I  Ian  Maclaren  and  Others 


i-'t. 


4  fCal  %^ 


BV  205  .152  1898 
Carpenter,  William  Boyd, 
1841-1918 

In  answer  to  prayer 

In  Answer  to  Prayer 


More  things  are  wrought  by  prayer 
Than  this  world  dreams  of  .  . 
.  .  .   What  are  men  better  than  sheep  or  goats 
That  nourish  a  blind  life  within  the  brain, 
If  knowing  God,  they  lift  not  Iiands  of  prayer, 
Both  for  themselves  and  those  who  call  them  friend  ? 

Tennyson 


In  Answer  to  Prayer 


By 

The  Right  Rev.  the  BISHOP  OF 
RIPON,  The  Rev.  Dr.  CUYLER, 
The  Rev.  Dr.  JOHN  WATSON 
("  IAN  Maclaren  "),  The  Rev. 
Canon  KNOX  LITTLE,  Mr. 
WILLIAM  QUARRIER,  MR.  L.  K. 
SHAW,  The  Rev.  Dr.  HORTON, 
The  Rev.  H.  PRICE  HUGHES,  The 
Rev.  Dr.  CLIFFORD,  AND 
The  DEAN  OF  SALISBURY 


NEW  YORK 

DODD,  MEAD    &    COMPANY 

1898 


John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambridge,  U.  S.  A. 


PREFATORY  NOTE 

The  following  pages  were  origmally  written  for 
the  Sunday  Magazine.  In  their  present  form 
it  is  hoped  that  they  will  reach  another  and 
not  less  appreciative  public. 

Although  Dr.  Watson's  contribution  is  of  a 
character  quite  distinct  fro7n  the  other  papers^ 
it  treats  of  a  phase  of  religious  experience  so 
closely  allied  to  that  of  answered  prayer  that 
it  seems  in  the  present  collection  to  serve  as  a 
stage  of  transition  from  the  sphere  of  the  unseen 
and  spiritual  to  that  of  the  visible  and  tangible. 


CONTENTS 

IN  ANSWER  TO  PRAYER 

PAGE 

By  the  Right  Rev.  W.  Boyd  Carpenter,  Lord 

Bishop  of  Ripon 1 1 

By  the  Rev.  Theodore  L.  Cuyler,  D.D.,  of 

New  York 19 

By  the  Rev.  John  Watson,  M.A.,  D.D. 

("Ian  Maclaren") 27 

By  the  Rev.  Canon  Knox  Little,  M.A.    .        .  39 

By  Mr.  William  Quarrier,  of  Glasgow  .        .  49 

By  Mr.  Leonard  K.  Shaw,  of  Manchester        .  67 

By  the  Rev.  R.  F.  Horton,  M.A.,  D.D.    .        .  75 

By  the  Rev.  H.  Price  Hughes,  M.A.        .        .  89 

By  the  Rev.  J.  Clifford,  M.A.,  D.D.  .  .  loi 
By  the  Very   Rev.   G.   D.   Boyle,   M.A.,  Dean 

of  Salisbury "9 


By  the  Right  Rev. 

W.  BOYD  CARPENTER,  D.D. 

Lord  Bishop  of  Ripon 


I  HAVE  been  asked  to  write  some  thoughts 
on  answers  to  prayer.  I  am  afraid  that 
I  cannot  give  from  personal  experience 
vivid  and  striking  anecdotes  such  as  others 
have  chronicled.  God  does  not  deal  with  all 
aHke,  either  in  His  gifts  of  faith  or  in  those 
of  experience.  We  differ  also  in  the  use  we 
make  of  His  gifts.  But  if  I  mistake  not  the 
object  of  these  papers  is  not  merely  to  gather 
together  an  array  of  startling  experiences,  but 
rather  to  unite  in  conference  on  the  great 
subject  of  prayer  and  the  answers  to  prayer. 


12  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

No  doubt  every  Christian  spirit  holds 
within  his  memory  many  cherished  experi- 
ences of  God's  dealings  with  him,  and  these 
must  touch  the  question  of  prayer.  But  the 
greater  part  of  these  experiences  belong  to 
that  sanctuary  life  of  the  soul  which,  rightly 
or  wrongly,  we  keep  veiled  from  the  world. 
There  are  some  matters  which  would  lose  their 
charm  if  they  were  made  public  property. 
There  is  a  reticence  which  is  of  faith,  just  as 
there  may  be  a  reticence  which  is  of  cowardice 
or  unfaith.  But  like  the  little  home  treasures, 
which  we  only  open  to  look  upon  when  we 
are  alone,  so  are  some  of  the  secret  treasures 
of  inward  experiences.  Nevertheless,  none 
of  us  can  have  lived  and  thought  without 
meeting  with  a  sort  of  general  confirmation  or 
otherwise  of  the  efficacy  of  prayer;  and 
though  I  cannot  chronicle  positive  and 
striking  examples,  I  can  say  what  I  have 
known. 

I  have  known  men  of  a  naturally  timid  and 
sensitive  disposition  who  have  grown  at 
moments  lion-like  in  courage,  and  they  would 
tell  you  that  courage  came  to  them  in  prayer. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  13 

I  have  known  one  man,  who  found  himself 
face  to  face  with  a  duty  which  was  unexpected 
and  from  which  he  shrank  with  all  his  soul. 
I  have  known  that  such  a  one  has  prayed 
that  the  duty  might  not  be  pressed  upon  him, 
and  yet  that,  if  it  were,  he  might  be  given 
strength  to  fulfil  it.  The  duty  still  confronted 
him.  In  trembling  and  in  much  dismay  he 
undertook  it;  and  when  the  hour  came,  it 
found  him  calm  and  equable  in  spirit,  neither 
dismayed  nor  demoralised  by  fears.  Such  a 
one  might  not  tell  of  great  outward  answers 
to  prayer;  but  inward  answers  are  not  less 
real.  At  any  rate,  the  Psalmist  chronicled 
an  answer  such  as  this  when  he  wrote :  "  In 
the  day  when  I  cried  Thou  answeredst  me 
and  strengthenedst  me  with  strength  in  my 
soul"  (Psalm  cxxxviii.  3). 

There  is,  further,  a  paradox  of  Christian 
experience  which  may  be  noted.  The  soul 
which  waits  upon  God  finds  out  sooner  or 
later  that  the  prayers  which  seem  to  be  un- 
answered are  those  which  may  be  most  truly 
answered.  For  what  is  the  answer  to  prayer 
which  the  praying  heart  looks  for?     There 


14  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

is  no  true  prayer  without  the  proviso  — Never- 
theless not  what  I  will,  but  what  Thou  wilt. 
In  other  words,  there  is  no  true  prayer  with- 
out reliance  upon  the  greater  wisdom  and 
greater  love  of  Him  to  whom  we  pray.  Thus 
it  is  that  God's  answer  may  not  be  the  answer 
as  we  looked  for  it.  We  form  our  expecta- 
tions :  they  take  shape  from  our  poor  little 
limited  surroundings;  but  the  prayer  in  its 
spirit  may  be  wider  than  we  imagine.  To 
answer  it  according  to  our  expectations 
might  be  not  to  answer  it  truly.  To  answer 
it  according  to  our  real  meaning  —  i.e.,  ac- 
cording to  our  spiritual  desire  —  must  be 
the  true  answer  to  prayer. 

One  illustration  will  suffice.  A  man, 
pressed  by  difficulty  and  straitness,  may 
pray  that  he  may  be  moved  to  some  place 
of  greater  freedom  and  ease.  He  thinks 
that  he  ought  to  move  elsewhere.  He  prays 
for  guidance  and  the  openings  of  God's 
providence.  In  a  short  time  a  vacant  post 
presents  itself:  he  applies  for  it,  it  is  just 
the  thing  he  wished  for.  He  continues  his 
prayers.     The  post  is  given  to  another.     His 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  15 

prayers  have  not  been  answered :  such  is  his 
conclusion ;  but  is  not  the  answer  really  — 
"  Not  yet  —  not  yet  —  wait  awhile.  My  grace 
is  sufficient  for  thee"?  He  waits;  he  leaves 
his  life  in  God's  hands.  After  an  interval 
another  opening  occurs,  and  almost  without 
an  effort  he  is  moved  to  the  vacant  place. 
It  is  this  time,  perhaps,  not  the  kind  of  place 
he  thought  of;  it  is  less  interesting,  it  is 
more  onerous,  it  fills  him  with  fear  as  he 
undertakes  its  duties.  He  has  prayed,  but 
the  answer  came  not  as  he  wished  or  thought 
or  hoped.  The  years  go  by.  He  looks  back 
from  the  vantage-ground  of  distance.  He 
can  measure  his  life  in  better  proportions. 
He  sees  now  that  the  movements  of  his  life 
have  a  deep  meaning.  He  perceives  that  to 
have  gone  where  he  wished  to  have  gone, 
and  even  where  he  prayed  to  be  placed, 
would  have  been  to  miss  some  of  the  best 
experiences  and  highest  trainings  of  this  life. 
He  begins  to  reahse  that  there  is  not  a  spot 
which  he  has  visited,  not  a  place  where  he 
has  toiled,  which  has  not  brought  to  him 
lessons   that   have   been    most   helpful,  nay, 


1 6  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

even  needful,  in  his  later  life.  He  sees  that 
God  has  sent  him  here  or  there  to  fit  him 
for  work  which,  unknown  and  unexpected  in 
his  earlier  days,  the  future  was  to  bring. 

The  least-answered  prayer  may  be  the 
most-answered.  It  is  the  realisation  that 
experiences  fit  us  for  the  duties  of  later  life 
which  yields  to  us  the  assurance  that  in  the 
deepest  sense  our  seemingly  disregarded 
prayers  have  been  most  abundantly  remem- 
bered before  God.  Thus,  indeed,  we  can 
enter  into  the  spirit  of  familiar  words  and 
acknowledge  concerning  each  prayer  that 
it  is 

"  Goodness  still, 
Which  grants  it  or  denies." 

And  so  it  may  come  to  pass  in  later  life 
that  our  specific  petitions  for  this  or  that 
thing  may  grow  fewer.  We  may  realise 
more  and  more  our  own  ignorance  in  asking. 
We  may  rely  more  and  more  on  the  divine 
wisdom  in  giving.  Even  in  the  case  of  others 
we  may  recognise  the  unwisdom  of  asking 
many  things  on  their  behalf.  Our  love  would 
tenderly  shield  them  from  rough  winds  and 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  17 

bitter  hours.  We  pray  that  the  divine  love 
would  spare  them  dark  days;  and  yet,  are 
the  prayers  well  prayed?  Does  God  not 
lead  souls  through  darkness  into  light?  Is 
not  the  Valley  of  the  Shadow  the  precursor 
of  the  table  of  love  which  God  spreads? 
Can  the  head  be  anointed  with  God's  kingly 
oil  which  has  not  been  bowed  down  in  the 
darkness?  Ah!  how  little  we  know!  how 
short-sighted  we  are!  And  how  great  and 
full  and  strong  God's  love  is!  And,  this 
being  so,  may  not  experience  bring  us  larger 
trust  and  lesser  prayers  —  not  less,  indeed,  in 
intensity,  not  less  in  the  wrestling  of  spirit; 
not  less  in  the  striving  to  reach  nearer  to 
God's  will,  but  less  in  the  number  and  spe- 
cific character  of  our  petitions?  To  put  it 
another  way — the  petitions  are  fewer  be- 
cause the  prayer  is  deeper  and  truer. 

"  Not  my  weak  longings,  Lord,  fulfil, 
But  rather  do  Thy  perfect  will, 
For  I  am  blind  and  wish  for  things 
Which  granted  bring  heart-festerings. 
Let  me  but  know  that  I  am  blind, 
Let  me  but  trust  Thee  wondrous  kind.'* 


By  the  Rev. 

THEODORE  L.  CUYLER,  D.D. 

OF  New  York 


ALL  of  God's  mighty  men  and  women 
have  been  mighty  in  prayer.  When 
Martin  Luther  was  in  the  mid-valley  of  his 
conflict  with  the  man  of  sin  he  used  to 
say  that  he  could  not  get  on  without  three 
hours  a  day  in  prayer.  Charles  G.  Finney's 
grip  on  God  gave  him  a  tremendous  grip 
on  sinners'  hearts.  The  greatest  preacher 
of  our  times  —  Spurgeon  —  had  pre-emi- 
nently the  "  gift  of  the  knees ;  "  the  last 
prayer  I  ever  heard  him  utter  (at  his  own 
family  worship)  was  one  of  the  most  won- 


20  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

derful  that  I  ever  listened  to ;  it  revealed 
the  hiding  of  his  power.  Abraham  Lincoln 
once  said :  "  I  have  been  driven  many  times 
to  my  knees  by  the  overwhelming  conviction 
that  I  had  nowhere  else  to  go;  my  own 
wisdom  and  that  of  all  around  me  seemed 
insufficient  for  the  day." 

But  what  is  prayer?  Has  every  prayer 
power  with  God?  Let  us  endeavour  to  get 
some  clear  ideas  on  that  point.  Some  peo- 
ple seem  to  regard  prayer  as  the  rehearsal 
of  a  set  form  of  solemn  words,  learned 
largely  from  the  Bible  or  a  liturgy;  and 
when  uttered  they  are  only  from  the  throat 
outward.  Genuine  prayer  is  a  believing 
soul's  direct  converse  with  God.  Phillips 
Brooks  has  condensed  it  into  four  words  — 
a  "true  wish  sent  Godward."  By  it,  adora- 
tion, thanksgiving,  confession  of  sin,  and 
petition  for  mercies  and  gifts  ascend  to  the 
throne,  and  by  means  of  it  infinite  blessings 
are  brought  down  from  heaven.  The  pull 
of  our  prayer  may  not  move  the  everlasting 
throne,  but  —  like  the  pull  on  a  line  from  the 
bow  of  a  boat  —  it  may  draw  us  into  closer 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  21 

fellowship   with    God,    and    fuller    harmony 
with  His  wise  and  holy  will. 

I.  This  is  the  first  characteristic  of  the 
prayer  that  has  power :  "  Delight  thyself  in 
the  Lord  and  He  shall  give  thee  the  desires 
of  thy  heart."  A  great  many  prayers  are 
born  of  selfishness  and  are  too  much  like 
dictation  or  command.  None  of  God's 
promises  are  unconditional;  and  we  have 
no  such  assets  to  our  credit  that  we  have  a 
right  to  draw  our  cheques  and  demand  that 
God  shall  pay  them.  The  indispensable  qual- 
ity of  all  right  asking  is  a  right  spirit  toward 
our  heavenly  Father.  When  a  soul  feels  such 
an  entire  submissiveness  towards  God  that  it 
delights  in  seeing  Him  reign,  and  His  glory 
advanced,  it  may  fearlessly  pour  out  its 
desires ;  for  then  the  desires  of  God  and  the 
desires  of  that  sincere  submissive  soul  will 
agree.  God  loves  to  give  to  them  who  love 
to  let  Him  have  His  way;  they  find  their 
happiness  in  the  chime  of  their  own  desires 
with  the  will  of  God. 

James  and  John  once  came  to  Jesus  and 
made  to  Him  the  amazing  request  that  He 


22  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

would  place  one  of  them  on  His  right  hand 
and  the  other  on  His  left  hand  when  He  set 
up  His  imperial  government  at  Jerusalem ! 
As  long  as  these  self-seeking  disciples  sought 
only  their  own  glory,  Christ  could  not  give 
them  the  askings  of  their  ambitious  hearts. 
By-and-by,  when  their  hearts  had  been  re- 
newed by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  they  had 
become  so  consecrated  to  Christ  that  they 
were  in  complete  chime  with  Him,  they 
were  not  afraid  to  pour  out  their  deepest 
desires.  James  declares  that,  if  we  do  not 
"  ask  amiss,''  God  will  *'  give  liberally." 
John  declares  that  '*  whatsoever  we  ask,  we 
receive  of  Him,  because  we  keep  His  com- 
mandments and  do  those  things  that  are 
pleasing  in  His  sight."  Just  as  soon  as 
those  two  Christians  found  their  supreme 
happiness  in  Christ  and  His  cause  they 
received  the  desires  of  their  hearts. 

2.  The  second  trait  of  prevaihng  prayer  is 
that  it  aims  at  a  mark,  and  knows  what  it  is 
after.  When  we  enter  a  store  or  shop  we 
ask  the  salesman  to  hand  us  the  particular 
article   we    want.      There    is    an   enormous 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  23 

amount  of  pointless,  prayerless  praying 
done  in  our  devotional  meetings;  it  begins 
with  nothing  and  ends  nowhere.  The  model 
prayers  mentioned  in  the  Bible  were  short 
and  right  to  the  mark.  *'  God  be  merciful 
to  me  a  sinner  !  "  "  Lord,  save  me  !  "  cries 
sinking  Peter.  "  Come  down,  ere  my  child 
die !  "  exclaims  the  heart-stricken  nobleman. 
Old  Rowland  Hill  used  to  say,  "  I  like  short, 
ejaculatory  prayer;  it  reaches  heaven  before 
the  devil  can  get  a  shot  at  it." 

3.  In  the  next  place,  the  prayer  that  has 
power  with  God  must  be  a  prepaid  prayer. 
If  we  expect  a  letter  to  reach  its  destination 
we  put  a  stamp  on  it ;  otherwise  it  goes  to 
the  Dead-letter  Office.  There  is  what  may 
be  called  a  Dead-prayer  Office,  and  thou- 
sands of  well-worded  petitions  get  buried  up 
there.  All  of  God's  promises  have  their  con- 
ditions; we  must  comply  with  those  condi- 
tions, or  we  cannot  expect  the  blessings 
coupled  with  the  promises.  No  farmer  is 
such  an  idiot  as  to  look  for  a  crop  of  wheat 
unless  he  has  ploughed  and  sowed  his  fields. 
In  prayer,  we  must  first  be  sure  that  we  are 


24  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

doing  our  part  if  we  expect  God  to  do  His 
part.  There  is  a  legitimate  sense  in  which 
every  Christian  should  do  his  utmost  for  the 
answering  of  his  own  prayers.  When  a  cer- 
tain venerable  minister  was  called  on  to  pray 
in  a  missionary  convention  he  first  fumbled 
in  his  pocket,  and  when  he  had  tossed  the 
coin  into  the  plate  he  said,  ''  I  cannot  pray 
until  I  have  given  something."  He  prepaid 
his  prayer.  For  the  Churches  in  these  days 
to  pray,  **  Thy  kingdom  come,"  and  then 
spend  more  money  on  jewellery  and  cigars 
than  in  the  enterprise  of  Foreign  Missions, 
looks  almost  like  a  solemn  farce.  God  has 
no  blessings  for  stingy  pockets.  When  I 
hear  requests  for  prayer  for  the  conversion 
of  a  son  or  daughter,  I  say  to  myself,  How 
much  is  that  parent  doing  to  win  that  child 
for  Christ?  The  godly  wife  who  makes  her 
daily  life  attractive  to  her  husband  has  a 
right  to  ask  God  for  the  conversion  of  that 
husband ;  she  is  co-operating  with  the  Holy 
Spirit,  and  prepaying  her  heart's  request. 
God  never  defaults ;  but  He  requires  that  we 
prove  our  faith  by  our  works,  and  that  we 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  25 

never  ask  for  a  blessing  that  we  are  not 
ready  to  labour  for,  and  to  make  any  sacri- 
fice to  secure  the  blessing  which  our  souls 
desire. 

4.  Another  essential  of  the  prayer  that  has 
power  with  God  is  that  it  be  the  prayer  of 
faith,  and  be  offered  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ.  "  Whatsoever  ye  shall  ask  in  my 
name,  that  will  I  do,  that  the  Father  may 
be  glorified  in  the  Son."  The  chief  "  wrest- 
Hng"  that  we  are  to  do  is  not  with  any 
reluctance  on  God's  part;  it  is  with  the 
obstacles  which  sin  and  unbelief  put  in  our 
pathway.  What  God  orders  we  must  sub- 
mit to  uncomplainingly ;  but  we  must  never 
submit  to  what  God  can  better.  Never  sub- 
mit to  be  blocked  in  any  pious  purpose  or 
holy  undertaking  if,  with  God's  help,  you  can 
roll  the  blocks  out  of  your  pathway.  The 
faith  that  works  while  it  prays  commonl^,^ 
conquers ;  for  such  faith  creates  such  a  con- 
dition of  things  that  our  heavenly  Father  can 
wisely  hear  and  help  us.  Oh,  what  a  mag- 
nificent epic  the  triumphs  of  striving,  toiHng, 
victorious   faith    make !      The   firmament  of 


26  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

Bible  story  blazes  with  answers  to  prayer, 
from  the  days  when  Elijah  unlocked  the 
heavens  on  to  the  days  when  the  petitions 
in  the  house  of  John  Mark  unlocked  the 
dungeon,  and  brought  liberated  Peter  into 
their  presence.  The  whole  field  of  providen- 
tial history  is  covered  with  answered  prayers 
as  thickly  as  bright-eyed  daisies  cover  our 
Western  prairies.  Find  thy  happiness  in 
pleasing  God,  and  sooner  or  later  He  will 
surely  grant  thee  the  desires  of  thy  heart. 


Ill 

By  the  Rev. 

JOHN  WATSON,  M.A.,  D.D. 

("Ian  Maclaren") 


DURING  the  course  of  my  ministry,  and 
especially  of  recent  years,  I  have  been 
moved  to  certain  actions  for  which  there 
seemed  no  reason,  and  which  I  only  per- 
formed under  the  influence  of  a  sudden 
impulse.  As  often  as  I  yielded  to  this  in- 
ward guidance,  and  before  the  issue  was 
determined,  my  mind  had  a  sense  of  rehef 
and  satisfaction,  and  in  all  distinct  and  im- 
portant cases  my  course  was  in  the  end 
most  fully  justified.  With  the  afterlook  one 
is  most  thankful  that  on  certain  occasions  he 


28  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

was  not  disobedient  to  the  touch  of  the 
unseen,  and  only  bitterly  regrets  that  on 
other  occasions  he  was  callous  and  wilful  or 
was  overcome  by  shame  and  timidity.  What 
seem  just  and  temperate  inferences  from 
such  experiences  will  be  indicated  after  they 
have  been  described,  and  it  only  remains  for 
me  to  assure  my  readers  that  they  are  se- 
lected from  carefully  treasured  memories, 
and  will  be  given  in  as  full  and  accurate 
detail  as  may  be  possible  in  circumstances 
which  involve  other  people  and  one's  own 
private  life. 

It  was  my  privilege,  before  I  came  to 
Sefton  Park  Church,  to  serve  as  colleague 
with  a  venerable  minister  to  whom  I  was  sin- 
cerely attached  and  who  showed  me  much 
kindness.  We  both  felt  the  separation  keenly 
and  kept  up  a  constant  correspondence,  while 
this  good  and  affectionate  man  followed 
my  work  with  spiritual  interest  and  constant 
prayer.  When  news  came  one  day  that  he 
was  dangerously  ill  it  was  natural  that  his 
friend  should  be  gravely  concerned,  and  as 
the  days  of  anxiety  grew,   that  the    matter 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  29 

should  take  firm  hold  of  the  mind.  It 
was  a  great  relief  to  learn,  towards  the  end 
of  a  week,  that  the  sickness  had  abated, 
and  when,  on  Sunday  morning,  a  letter  came 
with  strong  and  final  assurance  of  recovery 
the  strain  was  quite  relaxed,  and  I  did  my 
duty  at  morning  service  with  a  light  heart. 
During  the  afternoon  my  satisfaction  began 
to  fail,  and  I  grew  uneasy  till,  by  evening 
service,  the  letter  of  the  morning  counted 
for  nothing. 

After  returning  home  my  mind  was  torn 
with  anxiety  and  became  most  miserable, 
fearing  that  this  good  man  was  still  in  danger 
and,  it  might  be,  near  unto  death.  Gradually 
the  conviction  deepened  and  took  hold  of 
me  that  he  was  dying  and  that  I  would  never 
see  him  again,  till  at  last  it  was  laid  on  me 
that  if  I  hoped  to  receive  his  blessing  I  must 
make  haste,  and  by-and-by  that  I  had  better 
go  at  once.  It  did  not  seem  as  if  I  had  now 
any  choice,  and  I  certainly  had  no  longer 
any  doubt;  so,  having  written  to  break  two 
engagements  for  Monday,  I  left  at  midnight 
for    Glasgow.      As    I  whirled    through    the 


30  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

darkness  it  certainly  did  occur  to  me  that  I 
had  done  an  unusual  thing,  for  here  was  a 
fairly  busy  man  leaving  his  work  and  going 
a  long  night's  journey  to  visit  a  sick  friend, 
of  whose  well-being  he  had  been  assured  on 
good  authority.  By  every  evidence  which 
could  tell  on  another  person  he  was  acting 
foolishly,  and  yet  he  was  obeying  an  almost 
irresistible  impulse. 

The  day  broke  as  we  climbed  the  ascent 
beyond  Moffat,  and  I  was  now  only  con- 
cerned lest  time  should  be  lost  on  the  way. 
On  arrival  I  drove  rapidly  to  the  well-known 
house,  and  was  in  no  way  astonished  that  the 
servant  who  opened  the  door  should  be 
weeping  bitterly,  for  the  fact  that  word  had 
come  from  that  very  house  that  all  was  going 
well  did  not  now  weigh  one  grain  against  my 
own  inward  knowledge. 

"  He  had  a  relapse  yesterday  afternoon, 
and  he  is  .  .  .  dying  now."  No  one  in  the 
room  seemed  surprised  that  I  should  have 
come,  although  they  had  not  sent  for  me, 
and  I  held  my  reverend  father's  hand  till  he 
fell  asleep  in  about  twenty  minutes.     He  was 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  31 

beyond  speech  when  I  came,  but,  as  we  be- 
lieved, recognised  me  and  was  content.  My 
night's  journey  was  a  pious  act,  for  which  I 
thanked  God,  and  my  absolute  conviction  is 
that  I  was  guided  to  its  performance  by 
spiritual  influence. 

Some  years  ago  I  was  at  work  one  fore- 
noon in  my  study,  and  very  busy,  when  my 
mind  became  distracted  and  I  could  not 
think  out  my  sermon.  It  was  as  if  a  side 
stream  had  rushed  into  a  river,  confusing  and 
discolouring  the  water;  and  at  last,  when 
the  confusion  was  over  and  the  water  was 
clear,  I  was  conscious  of  a  new  subject. 
Some  short  time  before,  a  brother  minister, 
whom  I  knew  well  and  greatly  respected,  had 
suffered  from  dissension  in  his  congregation 
and  had  received  our  sincere  sympathy.  He 
had  not,  however,  been  in  my  mind  that  day, 
but  now  I  found  myself  unable  to  think  of 
anything  else.  My  imagination  began  to 
work  in  the  case  till  I  seemed,  in  the  midst 
of  the  circumstances,  as  if  I  were  the  sufferer. 
Very  soon  a  suggestion  arose  and  grew  into 
a  commandment,  that  I  should  ofl"er  to  take 


32  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

a  day's  duty  for  my  brother.  At  this  point 
I  pulled  myself  together  and  resisted  what 
seemed  a  vagrant  notion.  "  Was  such  a 
thing  ever  heard  of,  —  that  for  no  reason  save 
a  vague  sympathy  one  should  leave  one's 
own  pulpit  and  undertake  the  work  of  an- 
other, who  had  not  asked  him  and  might  not 
want  him?  "  So  I  turned  to  my  manuscript 
to  complete  a  broken  sentence,  but  could 
only  write  ''  Dear  A.  B."  Nothing  remained 
but  to  submit  to  this  mysterious  dictation 
and  compose  a  letter  as  best  one  could,  till 
the  question  of  date  arose.  There  I  paused 
and  waited,  when  an  exact  day  came  up  be- 
fore my  mind,  and  so  I  concluded  the  letter. 
It  was,  however,  too  absurd  to  send ;  and  so, 
having  rid  myself  of  this  irrelevancy,  I  threw 
the  letter  into  the  fire  and  set  to  work  again ; 
but  all  day  I  was  haunted  by  the  idea  that 
my  brother  needed  my  help.  In  the  evening 
a  letter  came  from  him,  written  that  very 
forenoon,  explaining  that  it  would  be  a  great 
service  to  him  and  his  people  if  I  could 
preach  some  Sunday  soon  in  his  church,  and 
that,  owing  to  certain  circumstances,  the  ser- 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  33 

vice  would  be  doubled  if  I  could  come  on 
such  and  such  a  day;  and  it  was  my  date! 
My  course  was  perfectly  plain,  and  I  at  once 
accepted  his  invitation  under  a  distinct  sense 
of  a  special  call,  and  my  only  regret  was  that 
I  had  not  posted  my  first  letter. 

One  afternoon,  to  take  my  third  instance, 
I  made  up  my  list  of  sick  visits  and  started 
to  overtake  them.  After  completing  the 
first,  and  while  going  along  a  main  road,  I 
felt  a  strong  impulse  to  turn  down  a  side 
street  and  call  on  a  family  living  in  it.  The 
impulse  grew  so  urgent  that  it  could  not  be 
resisted,  and  I  rang  the  bell,  considering  on 
the  doorstep  what  reason  I  should  give  for 
an  unexpected  call.  When  the  door  opened 
it  turned  out  that  strangers  now  occupied 
the  house,  and  that  my  family  had  gone  to 
another  address,  which  was  in  the  same  street 
but  could  not  be  given.  This  was  enough, 
it  might  appear,  to  turn  me  from  aimless 
visiting,  but  still  the  pressure  continued  as  if 
a  hand  were  drawing  me,  and  I  set  out  to 
discover  their  new  house,  till  I  had  disturbed 
four  families  with  vain  inquiries.  Then  the 
3 


34  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

remembrance  of  my  unmade  and  imperative 
calls  came  upon  me,  and  I  abandoned  my 
fruitless  quest  with  some  sense  of  shame. 
Had  a  busy  clergyman  not  enough  to  do 
without  such  a  wild-goose  chase?  —  and  one 
grudged  the  time  one  had  lost. 

Next  morning  the  head  of  that  household 
I  had  yesterday  sought  in  vain  came  into 
my  study  with  such  evident  sorrow  on  his 
face  that  one  hastened  to  meet  him  with 
anxious  inquiries.  '^  Yes,  we  are  in  great 
trouble;  yesterday  our  little  one  (a  young 
baby)  took  very  ill  and  died  in  the  afternoon. 
My  wife  was  utterly  overcome  by  the  shock 
and  we  would  have  sent  for  you  at  the  time 
but  had  no  messenger.  I  wish  you  had  been 
there  —  if  you  had  only  known  !  " 

"And  the  time?  " 

''  About  half-past  three." 

So  I  had  known,  but  had  been  too  im- 
patient. 

Many  other  cases  have  occurred  when  it 
has  been  laid  on  me  to  call  at  a  certain 
house,  where  there  seemed  so  little  reason 
that  I  used  to  invent  excuses,  and  where  I 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  35 

found  some  one  especially  needing  advice 
or  comfort;  or  I  called  and  had  not  cour- 
age to  lead  up  to  the  matter,  so  that  the 
call  was  of  no  avail,  and  afterwards  some 
one  has  asked  whether  I  knew,  for  she  had 
waited  for  a  word.  Nor  do  I  remember 
any  case  where,  being  inwardly  moved  to  go 
after  this  fashion,  it  appeared  in  the  end 
that  I  had  been  befooled.  And  so,  having- 
stated  these  facts  out  of  many,  I  offer  three 
inferences. 

(i)  That  people  may  live  in  an  atmosphere 
of  sympathy  which  will  be  a  communicating 
medium.  When  some  one  appears  to  read 
another's  thoughts,  as  we  have  all  seen  done 
at  public  exhibitions,  it  was  evidently  by 
physical  signs,  and  it  served  no  good  pur- 
pose. It  was  a  mechanical  gift  and  was  used 
for  an  amusement.  This  is  knowledge  of 
another  kind,  whose  conditions  are  spiritual 
and  whose  ends  are  ethical.  Between  you 
and  the  person  there  must  be  some  common 
feeling;  it  rises  to  a  height  in  the  hour  of 
trouble;  and  its  call  is  for  help.  The  cor- 
respondence here  is  between  heart  and  heart, 


36  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

and  the  medium  through  which  the  message 
passes  is  love. 

(2)  That  this  love  is  but  another  name  for 
Christ,  who  is  the  head  of  the  body;  and 
here  one  falls  back  on  St.  Paul's  profound 
and  illuminating  illustration.  It  is  Christ 
who  unites  the  whole  race,  and  especially  all 
Christian  folk,  by  His  incarnation.  Into 
Him  are  gathered  all  the  fears,  sorrows, 
pains,  troubles  of  each  member,  so  that  He 
feels  with  all,  and  from  him  flows  the  same 
feeling  to  other  members  of  the  body.  He 
is  the  common  spring  of  sensitiveness  and 
sympathy,  who  connects  each  man  with  his 
neighbour  and  makes  of  thousands  a  living 
organic  spiritual  unity. 

(3)  That  in  proportion  as  one  abides  in 
Christ  he  will  be  in  touch  with  his  brethren. 
If  it  seem  to  one  marvellous  and  almost  in- 
credible that  any  person  should  be  affected 
by  another's  sorrow  whom  he  does  not  at  the 
moment  see,  is  it  not  marvellous,  although 
quite  credible,  that  we  are  so  often  indifferent 
to  sorrow  which  we  do  see?  Is  it  not  the 
case  that  one  of  a  delicate  soul  will  detect 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  37 

secret  trouble  In  the  failure  of  a  smile,  in 
a  sub-tone  of  voice,  in  a  fleeting  shadow 
on  the  face?  "How  did  he  know?"  we 
duller  people  say.  "  By  his  fellowship  with 
Christ "  Is  the  only  answer.  "  Why  did  we 
not  know?"  On  account  of  our  hardness 
and  selfishness.  If  one  live  self-centred  — 
ever  concerned  about  his  own  affairs,  there 
is  no  callousness  to  which  he  may  not  yet 
descend ;  if  one  live  the  selfless  life,  there  is 
no  mysterious  secret  of  sympathy  which  may 
not  be  his.  Wherefore  if  any  one  desire  to 
live  in  nervous  touch  with  his  fellows,  so  that 
their  sorrows  be  his  own  and  he  be  their 
quick  helper.  If  he  desire  to  share  with  Christ 
the  world  burden,  let  him  open  his  heart  to 
the  Spirit  of  the  Lord.  In  proportion  as  we 
live  for  ourselves  are  we  separated  from  our 
families,  our  friends,  our  neighbours ;  in  pro- 
portion as  we  enter  into  the  life  of  the  Cross 
we  are  one  with  them  all,  being  one  with 
Christ,  who  is  one  with  God. 


IV 

By  the  Rev. 

W.  KNOX  LITTLE,  M.A. 
Canon  of  Worcester 


PRAYER  is  a  comprehensive  word  and 
includes,  in  fact,  all  communion  be- 
tween the  soul  and  God.  It  is,  however, 
commonly  used  to  mean  the  asking  for 
benefits  from  God.  Christians  believe  that 
prayer  is  a  power,  that  it  does  act  in  the 
fulfilment  of  God's  purposes,  and  that  the 
results  of  prayer  are  real  results,  not  only  in 
the  spiritual,  but  also  in  the  physical  world. 
This  is  no  mere  matter  of  opinion,  it  is  part 
of  the  Christian  faith.  For  better,  for  worse, 
however  difficult  the  doctrine  may  appear, 


40  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

the  Church  is  committed  to  it.  As  in  the 
case  of  other  difficult  doctrines,  such  as  the 
resurrection  of  the  body  for  instance,  she,  so 
to  speak,  *'  stakes  her  reputation  "  on  loyalty 
to  this  truth. 

The  power  of  prayer  is,  of  course,  a  mys- 
tery, i.  e.y  a  truth,  but  a  truth  partly  concealed, 
partly  plain.  To  deal  with  it,  therefore,  in  a 
mathematical  temper  rather  than  a  moral 
temper  is  absurd  if  not  wrong.  Mathematical 
demonstration  cannot  be  given  for  moral 
truth,  and  is  in  fact  out  of  court.  The  bent 
of  mind  formed  by  constant  scientific  re- 
search—  good  as  it  is  in  its  own  province  — 
sometimes  unfits  men  for  moral  and  theolo- 
gical research.  In  this  way  the  "  difficulties 
of  prayer"  are  often  exaggerated,  (i)  It  is 
said  God  knows  already;  why  tell  Him? 
The  same  objection  would  apply  to  many 
a  request  on  earth.  (2)  It  is  said  God  fore- 
sees ;  why  try  to  influence  what  He  knows  is 
sure  to  be?  This  objection  applies  to  all 
our  actions;  to  follow  out  this  we  should 
not  only  not  pray,  but  also  never  do  any- 
thing.   We  are  in  face  of  a  mystery.    A  little 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  41 

humility  and  obedience  to  revelation  helps 
us  out.  It  has  been  truly  said  that  when  a 
practical  and  a  speculative  truth  are  in  appa- 
rent collision,  we  must  remember  our  igno- 
rance of  a  good  many  things,  and  act  with 
the  knowledge  which  is  given  us,  on  the 
practical  truth. 

Prayer,  we  may  remember,  is  not  to  change 
the  holy  counsels  of  the  Eternal,  but  to 
accomplish  those  ends  for  which  it  is  an  ap- 
pointed instrument.  Anyhow,  this  is  certain, 
the  abundant  promises  to  faithful  and  per- 
severing prayer  are  kept,  and  —  where  God 
sees  it  to  be  good  for  us  —  they  are  kept  to 
the  letter.  The  following  are  examples  which 
come  within  the  knowledge  of  the  writer  of 
this  paper. 

A  family,  consisting  of  a  number  of  chil- 
dren, had  been  brought  up  by  parents  who 
had  very  '*  free "  ideas  as  to  the  divine 
revelation  and  the  teaching  of  the  Church. 
The  children,  varying  in  age  from  seven  or 
eight,  to  one  or  two  and  twenty  years,  had, 
one  way  or  another,  been  aroused  to  the 
teaching  of  Scripture  and  desired  to  be  bap- 


42  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

tised.  The  father  point-blank  refused  to 
permit  it.  The  older  members  of  the  family 
consulted  a  clergyman.  He  felt  strongly 
the  force  of  the  fifth  commandment  and 
advised  them  not  to  act  in  haste,  to  realise 
that  difficulties  do  frequently  arise  from 
conflicting  duties,  and  above  all  to  pray. 
The  clergyman  asked  a  number  of  devout 
Christians  to  make  the  matter  a  subject  of 
prayer.  They  did.  In  about  three  weeks 
the  father  called  upon  this  very  clergyman 
and  asked  him  to  baptise  his  children.  The 
clergyman  expressed  his  astonishment,  be- 
lieving that  he  was  opposed  to  it.  The 
father  answered  that  that  was  true,  but  he 
had  changed  his  mind.  He  could  not  say 
precisely  why,  but  he  thought  his  children 
ought  to  be  baptised.  They  were ;  and  he, 
by  his  own  wish,  was  present  and  most 
devout  at  the  administration  of  the  sacra- 
ment of  baptism. 

A  few  years  ago,  a  clergyman  in  London 
had  been  invited  to  visit  a  friend  for  one 
night  in  the  country  in  order  to  meet  an  old 
friend  whom  he  had  not  seen  for  long.     It 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  43 

was  bitter  winter  weather  and  he  decided 
not  to  go.  Walking  his  parish  in  the  after- 
noon, he  beheved  that  a  voice  three  times 
urged  him  to  go.  He  hurriedly  changed  his 
arrangements  and  went.  The  snow  was 
tremendously  deep,  and  the  house  of  his 
friend,  some  miles  from  the  railway  station, 
was  reached  with  difficulty.  In  the  course 
of  the  night  the  clergyman  was  roused  from 
sleep  by  the  butler,  who  begged  him  to  go 
and  visit  a  groom  in  the  service  of  the 
family,  who  was  ill  and  ''  like  to  die."  Cross- 
ing a  field  path  with  difficulty,  as  the  snow 
was  very  deep,  they  reached  the  poor  man's 
house.  He  had  been  in  agony  of  mind  and 
longed  to  see  a  clergyman.  When  it  was 
found  impossible  to  fetch  the  nearest  clergy- 
man, owing  to  the  impassable  state  of  the 
roads,  he  had  prayed  earnestly  that  one 
might  be  sent  to  him.  The  poor  fellow  died 
in  the  clergyman's  arms  in  the  early  morning, 
much  comforted  and  in  great  peace. 

A  strangely  similar  case  happened  more 
recently.  An  American  gentleman  travelling 
in  Europe  was  taken  suddenly  and  seriously 


44  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

ill  in  one  of  our  northern  towns.  The  day 
before  this  happened,  a  clergyman,  who  was 
at  a  distance  in  the  country,  was  seized  with 
a  sudden  and  unaccountable  desire  to  visit 
this  very  town.  He  had  no  idea  why,  but 
prayed  for  guidance  in  the  matter,  and 
finally  felt  convinced  that  he  must  go. 
Having  stayed  the  night  there  he  was  about 
to  return  home,  rather  inclined  to  think 
himself  a  very  foolish  person,  when  a  waiter 
in  the  hotel  brought  him  an  American  lady's 
card  and  said  that  the  lady  wished  to  see 
him.  He  was  the  only  English  clergyman 
of  whom  she  and  her  husband  had  any 
knowledge.  They  had  happened  to  hear 
him  preach  in  America.  She  had  no  idea 
where  he  lived,  but  when  her  husband  was 
taken  ill  she  and  her  daughter  had  prayed 
that  he  might  be  sent  to  them.  On  inquiry, 
strange  to  say,  he  was  found  to  be  in  the 
hotel,  and  was  able  to  render  some  assist- 
ance to  the  poor  sufferer,  who  died  in  a  few 
hours,  and  to  his  surviving  and  mourning 
relatives. 

A  still  more  striking  instance,  perhaps,  is 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  45 

as  follows:  Some  years  ago  in  London  a 
clergyman  had  succeeded,  with  the  help  of 
some  friends,  in  opening  a  "  home "  in  the 
suburbs  to  meet  some  special  mission  needs. 
It  was  necessary  to  support  it  by  charity. 
For  some  time  all  went  well.  The  home  at 
last,  however,  became  even  more  necessary 
and  more  filled  with  inmates,  whilst  subscrip- 
tions did  not  increase  but  rather  slackened. 
The  lady  in  charge  wrote  to  the  clergyman 
as  to  her  needs,  and  especially  drew  his 
attention  to  the  fact  that  ;£40  was  required 
immediately  to  meet  the  pressing  demand 
of  a  tradesman.  The  clergyman  himself  was 
excessively  poor,  and  he  knew  not  to  whom 
to  turn  in  the  emergency.  He  at  once  went 
and  spent  an  hour  in  prayer.  He  then  left 
his  house  and  walked  slowly  along  the  streets 
thinking  with  himself  how  he  should  act. 
Passing  up  Regent  Street,  a  carriage  drew 
up  in  front  of  Madame  Elise's  shop,  just  as 
he  was  passing.  Out  of  the  carriage  stepped 
a  handsomely  dressed  lady.  "  Mr.  So-and- 
so,  I  think,"  she  said  when  she  saw  him. 
"  Yes,  madam,"  he  answered,  raising  his  hat. 


46  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

She  drew  an  envelope  from  her  pocket  and 
handed  it  to  him,  saying :  "  You  have  many 
calls  upon  your  charity,  you  will  know  what 
to  do  with  that."  The  envelope  contained  a 
Bank  of  England  note  for  ;^50.  The  whole 
thing  happened  in  a  much  shorter  time  than 
it  can  be  related ;  he  passed  on  up  the  street, 
she  passed  into  the  shop.  Who  she  was  he 
did  not  know,  and  never  since  has  he  learnt. 
The  threatening  creditor  was  paid.  The 
"  home "  received  further  help  and  did  its 
work  well. 

Another  example  is  of  a  different  kind.  A 
person  of  real  earnestness  in  religious  ques- 
tions, and  one  who  gave  time  and  strength 
for  advancing  the  kingdom  of  God,  some 
years  ago  became  restless  and  unsatisfied  in 
spiritual  matters,  faihng  to  enjoy  peaceful 
communion  with  God,  and  generally  upset 
and  uneasy.  The  advice  of  a  clergyman  was 
asked,  and  after, many  conversations  on  the 
subject,  he  urged  steady  earnest  prayer  for 
light,  and  agreed  himself  to  make  the  matter 
a  subject  of  prayer.  Within  a  fortnight,  after 
an  earnest  midday  prayer,  it  was  declared  by 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  47 

this  troubled  soul  that  it  had  been  clearly 
borne  in  upon  the  mind  that  the  sacrament 
of  baptism  had  never  been  received.  En- 
quiry was  made,  and  after  much  careful 
investigation  it  was  found  that,  while  every 
other  member  of  a  large  family  had  been 
baptised,  in  this  case  the  sacrament  had  been 
neglected  owing  to  the  death  of  the  mother 
and  the  child  being  committed  to  the  care  of 
a  somewhat  prejudiced  relative.  The  person 
in  question  was  forthwith  baptised,  and  imme- 
diately there  was  peace  and  calmness  of  mind 
and  a  sense  of  quiet  communion  with  God. 

Instances  of  this  kind  might  be  multiplied, 
but  these  are,  perhaps,  sufficient.  "  In  every- 
thing," says  the  Apostle,  "  by  prayer  and 
supplication  with  thanksgiving  (the  Euchar- 
ist) let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto 
God."  **  Cast  all  your  care  upon  Him, 
for  He  careth  for  you."  The  power  of  the 
"prayer  of  faith"  is  astonishing  in  its  effi- 
cacy, if  souls  will  only  put  forth  that  power. 
I  am  able  to  guarantee,  from  personal  knowl- 
edge, the  truth  and  accuracy  of  the  above 
instances. 


By  Mr. 

WILLIAM  QUARRIER 

OF  Glasgow 


FOR  twenty-five  years  it  has  been  with 
me  a  continual  answer  to  prayer.  The 
first  seven  of  my  service  were  spent  in  caring 
for  the  rough  boys  of  the  streets  of  Glasgow, 
but  having  made  a  vow,  when  I  was  very 
young,  that  if  God  prospered  me  I  should 
build  houses  for  orphans,  I  was  not  satis- 
fied with  that  work  among  the  bigger  boys. 
Being  in  business,  however,  and  having  a 
family  to  maintain,  the  question  of  whether 
I  could  do  more  was  a  difficult  one.  I  was 
giving  eight  hours  a  day  to  the  work,  and  in 
4 


50  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

the  Shoe-black  Brigade,  the  Parcels  Brigade, 
and  the  Newspaper  Brigade  had  probably 
about  three  hundred  boys  to  care  for. 

While  I  considered  what  could  be  done, 
a  lady  from  London  —  Miss  Macpherson  — 
called,  and  in  the  course  of  our  talk  about 
the  little  ones,  she  urged  that  I  should  at- 
tempt something  more  than  I  was  doing. 
For  three  months  I  prayed  to  God  for 
guidance,  and  in  the  end  resolved  that  if 
He  sent  me  i^2000,  I  should  embark  in  the 
greater  work.  Nobody  knew  of  that  reso- 
lution; it  was  a  matter  between  God  and 
myself.  If  God  wanted  me  to  do  more 
work  than  I  was  doing,  I  felt  that  He  would 
send  me  the  ;^2000,  not  in  portions,  but  in 
a  sohd  sum.  I  was  then  before  the  pubhc, 
and  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the  newspapers  plead- 
ing that  something  more  should  be  done 
for  street  children,  pointing  out  that  the 
Poorhouse  and  the  Reformatory  were  not 
the  best  means  of  helping  child-life,  and 
urging  that  something  on  the  Home  or 
Family  system  was  desirable.  There  was  a 
strong   conviction   that   God    would   answer 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  51 

the  prayer,  and,  the  terms  of  the  prayer 
being  explicit,  I  believed  the  answer  would 
be  as  unmistakable.  After  waiting  thirteen 
days  the  answer  came.  Amongst  my  other 
letters  was  one  from  a  Scotch  friend  in  Lon- 
don, to  the  effect  that  the  writer  would,  to 
the  extent  of  ^2000,  provide  me  with  money 
to  buy  or  rent  a  house  for  orphan  children. 
When  I  received  that  call  I  felt  that  my 
family  interests  and  my  business  interests 
should  be  second,  and  that  God's  work 
among  the  children  should  be  first. 

To  a  business  man,  it  was  a  call  to  sur- 
render what  you  would  call  business  tact.  I 
had  to  rise  up  there  and  then,  and  proclaim 
in  the  midst  of  the  commercial  city  of  Glas- 
gow, that  from  that  moment  I  was  to  live  by 
faith,  and  depend  on  God  for  money,  wisdom 
and  strength.  From  that  time  forward  I 
would  ask  no  man  for  money,  but  trust 
God  for  everything.  That  ^£2000  was  the 
first  direct  answer  to  prayer  for  money.  He 
gave  me  the  utmost  of  my  asking,  and  I  felt 
that  I  would  need  to  give  Him  the  utmost 
of  the  power  I  pledged. 


52  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

We  rented  a  common  workshop  in  Ren- 
frew Lane  —  it  was  very  difficult  to  get  a 
suitable  place  —  to  lodge  the  children  in, 
and  that  little  place  was  the  first  National 
Home  for  Orphans  in  Scotland,  and  from 
it  has  sprung  what  the  visitor  may  see  to- 
day amongst  the  Renfrewshire  hills.  One 
day,  I  remember,  two  boys  came  in,  and  we 
had  everything  to  clothe  them  with  except 
a  jacket  for  one  of  them.  The  matron,  a 
very  godly  woman,  said,  *'  We  must  just 
pray  that  God  will  send  what  is  needed," 
and  we  prayed  that  He  would.  That  night 
a  large  parcel  of  clothing  came  from  Dum- 
barton, and  in  it  was  a  jacket  that  fitted  the 
boy  as  if  it  had  been  made  for  him.  That 
was  a  small  thing,  of  course,  but  if  you  don't 
see  God  in  the  gift  of  a  pair  of  stockings 
you  won't  see  Him  in  a  gift  of  ;^io,ooo. 

We  had  thirty  children  in  that  Home,  and 
we  kept  praying  that  the  Lord  would  open 
a  place  for  us  somewhere  in  the  country. 
A  friend  called  on  me  and  offered  to  sub-let 
Cessnock  House,  with  three  acres  of  ground 
about  it.     Cessnock  Dock  has  now  absorbed 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  53 

the  place,  and  as  it  was  just  the  very  spot 
we  wanted,  we  accepted.  We  had  room  for 
a  hundred  boys,  and  with  the  help  of  God 
we  prospered.  We  had  resolved  formerly 
that  we  would  send  children  to  Canada,  but 
it  took  ;£io  per  head  to  send  them,  and  we 
were  determined  not  to  get  into  debt.  We 
had  only  a  few  pounds  in  hand  when  we 
took  the  house  in  Govan  Road,  and  it  took 
^£"200  to  alter  it.  But  every  night  we  prayed 
that  the  Lord  would  send  money  to  pay  for 
the  alterations.  Sums  varying  from  5^.  to 
£^  came  in,  but  when  the  bills  came  to  be 
paid  we  were  short  ;^ioo.  A  friend  not  far 
from  one  of  my  places  of  business  sent  for 
me,  and  when  I  called,  he  said,  "  How  are 
you  getting  on  at  Cessnock?"  I  said  we 
were  getting  on  nicely,  and  that  we  had  got 
^100  towards  the  alterations.  He  gave  me 
jQioOy  to  my  astonishment,  for  I  knew  that 
he  could  not  afford  so  much,  but  he  said  a 
relative  who  died  in  England  had  left  him  a 
fortune,  and  the  money  was  to  help  me  in 
the  work  God  had  given  me  to  do.  In  that 
answer  you  see  how  God  works  mysteriously 


54  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

to  accomplish  His  purpose  and  help  those 
who  put  their  trust  in  Him. 

God  gives  us  great  help  in  dealing  with 
the  wayward,  wilful  boys  of  the  Home. 
They  are  generally  lads  who  have  known 
no  control;  but  we  are  able,  with  God's 
blessing  on  our  efforts,  to  get  them  to  do 
almost  anything  that  is  wanted,  without  strap 
or  confinement  or  threat.  To  hear  boys 
who  used  to  curse  and  swear  praying  to 
God,  and  to  see  them  helping  other  boys  in 
the  Home,  is  to  me  the  most  encouraging 
feature  of  the  work  God  has  given  me  to 
do.  Whilst  I  sought  to  clothe  and  educate 
them,  I  left  God  to  deal  with  them  in  their 
spirits ;  and  to-day  the  result  of  the  spiritual 
work  amongst  the  boys  and  girls  of  Glas- 
gow exceeds  anything  I  ever  expected. 

I  still  thought  of  the  emigration  scheme, 
and  in  1872  we  had  sixty  children  that  were 
able  to  go  to  Canada.  Of  course  it  meant 
jQ6oo  to  send  them,  and  we  had  the  neces- 
sary money  except  ^JO  in  the  end  of  June. 
We  prayed  on  that  God  would  send  the 
balance  before  the  day  of  sailing,  2nd  July. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  55 

A  friend  called  at  one  of  my  places  of  busi- 
ness to  see  me,  and  subsequently  I  had  an 
interview  with  him.  He  gave  me  ;£50,  and 
said  it  was  from  one  who  did  not  wish  the 
name  mentioned.  **  What  shall  I  put  it 
to?"  I  asked.  *' Anything  you  like,"  he 
said.  "  We  are  short  of  £jo  for  the  emi- 
gration of  our  first  band  of  children  to 
Canada,  and  if  you  like  I  shall  put  it  to 
that."  "  Do  so,"  he  said ;  and  as  the  man 
left  I  saw  God's  hand  in  the  gift  that  had 
been  made.  When  I  went  home  that  night 
I  found  amongst  my  letters  one  in  which  was 
enclosed  ^10  "to  take  a  child  to  Canada," 
and  the  post  on  the  following  morning 
brought  two  five-pound  notes  from  other 
friends,  making  up  exactly  at  the  moment 
it  was  needed  the  sum  I  had  asked  God 
to  give. 

In  addition  to  the  Homes,  we  carried  on 
mission  work  amongst  the  lapsed  masses, 
and,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Homes,  we  were 
firmly  resolved  to  do  everything  by  prayer 
and  supplication.  I  rented  an  old  church  at 
the  head  of  the  Little  Dovehill,  just  where 


56  In  Answer  tq  Prayer 

the  Board  school  stands  now,  as  a  hall,  but 
we  did  not  have  the  whole  of  it.  At  the 
level  of  the  gallery  another  floor  had  been 
introduced,  and  while  we  occupied  the  upper 
flat,  a  soap  manufacturer  occupied  the  lower. 
In  a  way  it  was  a  trial  of  faith  to  go  up  those 
stairs  past  the  soap  work  into  our  hall.  We 
wanted  to  open  the  place  free  of  debt,  and 
the  money  for  the  alterations  came  in  gradu- 
ally. I  remember  putting  it  to  the  Lord  to 
send  a  suitable  evangelist  if  He  wished  the 
work  to  go  on.  At  that  time  —  twenty-four 
years  ago  —  we  heard  a  lot  of  Joshua  Poole 
and  his  wife,  who  were  having  great  blessing 
in  London,  and  I  thought  that  they  were  just 
the  people  to  reach  the  working  classes.  But 
as  I  had  convictions  about  women  preaching, 

—  which,  by  the  way,  I  have  not  now,  —  I 
asked  the  Lord  to  send  £^o  to  cover  the 
expense  for  a  month  if  it  were  His  will  that 
these  friends  should  come  to  Glasgow  and 
preach  nightly  during  that  period.  I  left  it 
to  God  to  decide  whether  we  should  ask 
these  friends  or  not,  and  I  had  the  assurance 

—  the  assurance  of  faith,  —  that  the  money 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  57 

would  come.  When  I  went  home  that  night 
I  found  that  a  friend  had  called  at  one  of  my 
places  of  business  and  left  fifty  one-pound 
notes  without  knowing  my  mind  and  without 
knowing  I  needed  it. 

After  that  I  felt  that  God  was  going  to 
work  a  great  work  amongst  the  lapsed  masses 
of  Glasgow,  and  He  did  so.  For  six  months 
we  rented  the  Scotia  Music  Hall  on  Sab- 
bath evenings,  and  instead  of  a  month  the 
evangehsts  were  six  in  the  city  conducting 
services  every  night.  When  they  left,  ten 
thousand  people  gathered  on  the  Green  to 
bid  them  farewell.  Hundreds  were  led  to 
the  Saviour. 

After  a  number  of  years'  work  in  Glasgow 
with  the  Girls'  Home,  in  Govan  with  the 
Boys'  Home,  and  with  the  Mission  premises, 
the  need  of  a  farm  became  great.  I  prayed 
for  money  to  purchase  a  farm  of  about  fifty 
acres,  three  miles  or  so  from  Glasgow.  It 
was  to  have  a  burn  running  through  it,  good 
drainage,  and  everything  necessary.  I  was 
anxious  to  get  this  burn  for  the  children  to 
paddle  in  and  fish  in ;  but  I  feel  now  that  at 


58  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

the  time  I  was  rebellious  against  God  in  fix- 
ing the  site  so  near  Glasgow.  We  visited  a 
dozen  places,  but  the  cost  was  so  great  that 
I  was  fairly  beaten.  God  had  shut  up  every 
door. 

A  friend  met  me  on  the  street,  and  asked 
if  I  had  seen  the  farm  in  Kilmalcolm  Parish 
that  was  to  be  sold.  I  replied  that  I  had 
not,  and  that  I  considered  the  place  too  far 
away.  In  talking  over  the  matter,  he  per- 
suaded me  to  go  and  see  the  farm,  and  when 
I  did  go,  and,  standing  where  our  big  central 
building  is  now,  saw  that  it  had  everything  I 
prayed  for,  —  perfect  drainage,  and  not  only 
the  burn,  but  a  river  and  a  large  flat  field  for 
a  recreation  ground,  —  I  said  in  my  heart  to 
the  Lord:  "This  will  do."  Ever  since  I 
have  blessed  the  Lord  for  that ;  my  way  was 
not  God's  way,  and  so  He  shut  us  in  amongst 
these  Renfrewshire  hills,  away  from  the  ways 
of  men. 

After  paying  £^,^6o  for  the  farm,  we  had 
about  i^i,500  left,  and  in  1887  we  began  to 
build  a  church  and  school,  to  cost  ;^ 5,000. 
I  told  the  contractor  that  we  should  stop  if 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  59 

the  money  did  not  come  in;  but  it  kept 
coming  in,  and  the  work  went  on.  In  1888 
I  had  resolved  to  go  to  Canada  with  the 
party  of  children  going  out  that  year,  and  I 
saw  clearly  that  I  would  need  to  stop  the 
contractors  if  I  got  no  more  money  in  the 
interval,  for  I  was  still  ;^I400  short.  Yet  I 
beheved  the  Lord  would  send  the  money 
before  I  left  in  the  latter  end  of  May,  though 
the  time  I  write  of  was  as  far  on  as  the 
middle  of  the  month.  I  kept  praying,  and 
the  assurance  was  strong  that  the  money 
would  come.  Just  three  days  before  the 
date  on  which  I  was  to  sail,  a  friend  came  to 
me,  and  said  it  had  been  laid  upon  his  heart 
to  build  one  of  the  cottages  at  Bridge-of- 
Weir,  but  the  Lord,  he  thought,  would  accept 
the  money  for  the  central  building  just  as 
much  as  though  it  were  put  into  houses,  and 
he  handed  me  ;^I300. 

All  the  money  belonging  to  the  Homes 
and  all  my  own  was  in  the  City  of  Glasgow 
Bank  when  it  failed,  and  hundreds  of  the 
givers  were  involved  as  well.  On  my  way 
up  from  the  Homes  on  the  day  of  the  dis- 


6o  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

aster,  a  gentleman  met  me,  and  told  me  the 
sad  news.  At  the  moment  I  realised  what 
the  news  meant  for  me  —  my  own  personal 
loss  and  the  needs  of  the  Homes  —  for  that 
was  in  September,  and  our  financial  year 
closed  in  October.  With  all  our  money 
locked  up,  to  clear  the  year  without  debt 
would  be  difficult,  but  then  the  promise  of 
God  came:  ''Although  the  fig-tree  shall 
not  blossom,  neither  shall  fruit  be  in  the 
vines ;  the  labour  of  the  olive  shall  fail,  and 
the  fields  shall  yield  no  meat;  the  flock 
shall  be  cut  off  from  the  fold,  and  there 
shall  be  no  herd  in  the  stalls;  yet  I  will 
rejoice  in  the  Lord;  I  will  joy  in  the  God 
of  my  salvation." 

There  and  then  I  prayed  that  God  would 
help  me  through,  and  that  during  the  course 
of  the  following  year,  which  I  saw  would  be 
one  of  financial  distress  all  over  Scotland, 
He  would  double  the  gifts  to  us.  The  re- 
sult was  that  we  were  able  to  clear  our 
financial  accounts  with  ease  at  the  end  of 
October,  and  in  the  year  following,  when 
every  church   in    Scotland,  and  every  phil- 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  6i 

anthropic  work  had  less  money  than  they 
needed,  the  Orphan  Homes  had  double 
what  they  required.  In  that  God  honoured 
my  trust. 

Our  first  church  at  Bridge-of-Weir  only 
held  four  hundred,  and  by-and-by  it  was  too 
small  for  us.  I  prayed  that  the  Lord  would 
give  us  a  new  church  to  hold  one  thousand 
people,  and  to  cost  something  like  ;^5000. 
We  felt  that  we  would  get  that  money,  and 
that  we  would  get  it  in  one  sum  because 
we  had  asked  God  to  lay  it  on  the  heart 
of  somebody  to  build  the  church.  After  a 
year  of  waiting  and  praying,  a  friend  came 
to  me  in  the  street  one  day,  and  said, 
**  r  m  going  to  build  you  that  church  you 
want.  Do  you  know  what  it  will  cost?" 
♦'Yes,"  I  repHed.  "  ;^5ooo."  ''Well,"  said 
my  friend,  "you  shall  get  the  money  when 
you  want  it." 

It  was  a  new  song  of  praise  to  God  that 
day,  I  can  tell  you,  and  we  went  on  to 
build  our  church.  Now,  even  It  we  find 
too  small,  and  we  are  praying  to  the  Lord 
for  £2^00  to  enlarge  the  building,  and  en- 


62  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

able  us  to  accommodate  five  hundred  more 
worshippers. 

I  thought  that,  having  got  the  church,  we 
might,  as  we  were  building  a  tower  to  hold 
the  tank  for  our  water  supply,  also  get  a 
clock  and  chimes  to  enliven  the  village. 
So  we  prayed  that  the  Lord  would  send 
money  for  that  purpose.  I  thought  that 
about  £soo  or  £600  would  be  sufficient. 
While  the  building  was  going  on,  we  prayed 
for  the  money,  and  I  was  certain  it  would 
come.  The  architect  was  hurrying  me  and 
pointing  out  that  if  the  clock  and  bells  were 
really  to  go  into  the  tower,  the  work  must 
be  done  at  once.  I  told  him  there  was  no 
fear  that  the  money  would  not  come.  If 
the  money  had  not  come,  and  the  tower 
was  completed,  the  placing  of  the  clock  and 
bells  at  a  later  period  would  have  meant 
practically  taking  down  and  rebuilding,  be- 
cause with  our  water  tank  in  position,  the 
work  would  have  been  impossible.  My 
architect  kept  bothering  me,  but  I  was  sure 
the  money  would  come,  and  one  night  I 
went  home  and  found  a  cheque  for  ;f2000 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  63 

—  ;fi500  to  build  a  house,  and  ;^500  for 
the  clock  and  bells.  The  clock  and  bells 
cost  £800,  and  the  lady  who  sent  the 
money  paid  the  additional  ;^300. 

A  village  like  our  Homes,  with  1200  of 
a  population,  needed  a  good  water  supply 
for  sanitary  purposes.  For  a  very  long  time 
we  depended  on  a  well,  and  stored  the  water 
in  tanks,  but  frequently  the  supply  fell  short, 
and  we  felt  that  if  we  could  get  the  proprie- 
tors in  the  upper  district  —  none  of  the  sur- 
rounding proprietors,  by  the  way,  had  ever 
taken  much  interest  in  the  work  of  the 
Homes  —  to  give  us  the  privilege  of  bringing 
water  into  the  grounds,  we  should  be  able  to 
do  much  to  improve  that  state  of  matters. 
Sir  Michael  Shaw  Stewart  gave  us  the  right 
to  use  our  own  burn  higher  up  for  the  pur- 
pose, and  gave  us  a  piece  of  ground  at  a 
nominal  rent  of  12s.  a  year,  for  a  reservoir 
and  filter,  but  the  money  to  carry  out  the 
work  was  not  in  hand,  and  we  prayed  to  the 
Lord  to  send  us  from  ;^I200  to  ;^I400,  which 
we  anticipated  would  be  the  cost  of  the 
undertaking. 


64  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

Some  time  later  a  lady  called  at  James 
Morrison  Street  (Glasgow),  and  left  word 
that  an  old  woman  who  lived  in  Main  Street, 
Gorbals,  wished  to  see  me.  On  the  following 
day  I  called  at  the  address  given,  and  found 
the  person  who  had  sent  for  me.  She  was 
an  old  woman  living  in  a  single  apartment, 
and  she  was  very  ill  and  weak.  "  Are  you 
Mr.  Quarrier?"  she  asked.  I  said  I  was. 
"  Ye  were  once  puir  yersel',''  she  went  on ; 
"  I  was  once  a  puir  girl  with  naebody  to  care 
for  me,  and  was  in  service  when  I  was  eleven 
years  old.  I  have  been  thankful  for  a*  the 
kindness  that  has  been  shown  me  in  my  life." 

She  went  to  a  chest  of  drawers  in  the 
corner  of  the  apartment,  and  after  a  little 
came  and  gave  me  two  deposit  receipts  on 
the  Savings  Bank,  each  for  ^200,  and  on 
neither  of  which  any  interest  had  been  drawn 
for  twenty  years.  When  I  cashed  them  I 
received  ^^627. 

I  said  ''Janet" — Janet  Stewart  was  her 
name  —  *'  are  you  not  giving  me  too  much?  " 
"  Na,  na,  I  Ve  plenty  mair,  an'  ye  '11  get  it  a' 
when  I  dee." 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  6$ 

We  did  the  best  we  could  for  Janet,  but 
she  did  not  live  much  longer.  Within  a 
week  I  received  a  telegram  that  Janet  was 
dead,  and  she  had  died,  I  was  told,  singing 
"Just  as  I  am  without  one  plea." 

In  her  will  she  left  several  sums  to  neigh- 
bours who  had  been  kind  to  her  in  life,  and 
to  our  Homes  was  bequeathed  the  balance. 
Altogether  the  Orphans'  share  was  ;^I400. 
The  money  defrayed  the  cost  of  our  water 
scheme,  and  I  always  think  how  appropriate 
the  gift  was,  for  nearly  all  her  life  Janet  had 
been  a  washerwoman  and  had  earned  her 
bread  over  the  wash-tub. 

The  direct  answers  to  prayers  of  which  I 
could  tell  you  would  fill  a  volume,  and  what 
I  have  mentioned  are  only  those  fixed  in  my 
memory.  I  have  always  asked  God  for  a 
definite  gift  for  a  definite  purpose,  and  God 
has  always  given  it  to  me.  The  value  of  the 
buildings  at  Bridge-of-Weir  is  ;^200,ooo,  and 
since  we  started,  the  cost  of  their  *'  upkeep  " 
has  been  ;^i 50,000.  And  we  are  still  build- 
ing as  busily  as  in  the  beginning. 


VI 

By  Mr. 

LEONARD  K.  SHAW 
OF  Manchester 


THE  work  for  homeless  children  in  Man- 
chester was  cradled  in  prayer.  Every 
step  in  preparation  was  laid  before  God. 
But  what  I  want  specially  to  insist  upon 
is  the  real  connection  there  is  between 
prayer  and  work.  From  the  first  my  practice 
has  been  to  lay  our  wants  before  God  in 
prayer,  and  at  the  same  time  to  use  every 
means  within  our  reach  to  obtain  what  we 
desired.  I  well  remember  in  the  early  days 
of  the  work  how  anxiously  we  discussed 
whether   it   was    to    be    conducted    on   the 


68  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

"  faith  "  principle,  as  it  is  called,  or  on  the 
*'work"  principle.  Looking  back  on  the 
way  by  which  we  have  come,  it  seems  to 
me  now  that  faith  and  work  necessarily 
go  together.  Earnest  believing  prayer  is  not 
less  earnest  and  believing  because  you  use 
the  means  God  has  put  within  your  reach. 
Your  dependence  upon  God  is  just  the 
same.  You  send  out  an  appeal,  but  it  is 
God  who  disposes  the  hearts  of  the  people 
to  subscribe.  So  I  say  the  connection  be- 
tween praying  and  working,  though  not 
always  seen,  is  very  real.  Day  by  day  the 
special  needs  of  the  work  are  laid  before 
God,  and  day  by  day  they  are  supplied. 

Of  direct  answers  to  prayer  I  have  had 
many  sweet  and  encouraging  assurances, 
particularly  in  connection  with  our  orphan 
homes.  In  the  first  five  years  of  the  work, 
we  only  took  in  boys  between  the  ages  of 
ten  and  sixteen.  At  that  time  of  life,  boys 
who  have  been  brought  up  on  the  street  are 
not  ^asy  to  manage,  and  a  friend  to  whom  I 
was  telling  some  of  our  difficulties,  suggested 
that  we  should   take   the   boys   in  younger. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  69 

To  do  so  meant  a  new  departure,  and  on 
going  into  the  matter  I  found  that  a  sum  of 
about  £600  would  be  needed  to  start  such 
an  orphan  home  as  was  suggested.  I  said 
to  my  wife,  '*  Let  us  pray  about  this ;  if  it  is 
God's  will  that  we  should  enter  upon  this 
new  branch  of  work.  He  will  send  the 
money."  We  resolved  that  should  be  the 
test;  if  the  money  came  we  would  start  the 
home,  otherwise  we  would  not.  Our  annual 
meeting  came  round  soon  after,  and  in  the 
report  I  made  an  appeal  on  behalf  of  the 
new  scheme.  The  report  was  sent  out  with 
much  prayer,  but  no  individual  person  was 
asked  to  contribute.  In  a  few  days  I 
received  a  letter  from  a  gentleman  residing 
in  Southport,  enclosing  a  cheque  for  £600, 
The  house  for  the  first  of  our  orphan  homes 
was  bought  for  ;^500,  and  the  balance  of  the 
cheque  enabled  us  to  furnish  it. 

At  the  end  of  the  following  year,  the 
home  was  full  of  fatherless  and  motherless 
little  ones,  and  others  were  seeking  admis- 
sion for  whom  there  was  no  room.  I  sent 
out  a  second  appeal,    asking  God  to  put  it 


70  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

into  the  heart  of  someone  to  provide  a 
second  home.  A  few  weeks  afterwards  a 
lady  well  known  in  Manchester  paid  us  a 
visit  at  the  home  and  two  days  later  I 
received  from  her  a  cheque  for  ;£"iooo.  In 
this  way  we  got  our  second  home.  Another 
year  and  this  second  home  was  also  full. 
Again  I  prayed  God  to  dispose  the  heart  of 
some  one  to  help  us,  and  I  sent  out  another 
appeal.  One  day,  perhaps  two  or  three 
weeks  later,  a  gentleman  stopped  me  in  the 
street  and  said  he  had  been  wanting  to  see 
me  for  some  days,  as  he  had  a  cheque  for 
;£700  waiting  for  me  at  his  office.  At  the 
moment  the  orphan  home  was  not  in  my 
mind,  and  I  asked  what  the  cheque  was  for. 
Why,  he  said,  I  understand  your  two  orphan 
homes  are  full  and  that  you  want  another. 
And  so  we  got  our  third  home.  Another 
year  and  it  too  was  full.  Again  after  earnest 
prayer  I  received  a  cheque  for  ;£^iooo  from 
another  Manchester  gentleman,  who  in  some 
way  had  come  to  know  that  a  fourth  home 
was  needed. 

In   these   four   cases    you   have,   I   think, 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  71 

remarkable  instances  of  direct  answer  to 
prayer.  So,  at  any  rate,  I  must  always  regard 
them.  I  need  not  say  how  encouraged  we 
were,  year  after  year,  to  go  on  with  the 
work,  though  each  additional  home  meant  a 
large  increase  in  our  annual  expenditure. 

The  money  with  which  the  fifth  orphanage 
house  was  bought  was  not  given  in  one  sum 
nor  specially  for  the  purpose,  and  the  cir- 
cumstances would  not  warrant  me  in  saying 
that  it  came  in  direct  answer  to  prayer. 
When  a  sixth  home  became  necessary  an 
appeal  was  made  to  the  schoolgirls  of  Lan- 
cashire and  Cheshire,  and  they  found  the 
;^500  for  the  purchase  money.  This  house 
is  called  "  The  School  Girls'  Home."  The 
inscription  on  the  memorial  stone,  *'  His 
children  shall  have  a  place  of  refuge,"  was 
suggested  by  the  late  Bishop  of  Manchester. 

In  smaller,  but  perhaps  not  less  important 
matters,  we  have  had  unmistakable  proofs 
that  God  answers  prayer.  One  case  which 
occurred  in  the  early  days  of  the  work  greatly 
impressed  me.  A  letter  came  one  morning 
from  Stalybridge  asking  us  to  take  in  five 


72  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

little  children  who  had  been  left  destitute  and 
without  a  friend  in  the  world.  I  went  over  to 
make  inquiries,  and  found  the  children  in  the 
same  room  with  the  dead  body  of  their 
mother,  which  had  little  more  to  cover  it 
than  an  old  sack.  Our  means  at  that  time 
were  very  small,  and  I  thought  we  could 
hardly  venture  to  take  in  all  the  children. 
The  clergyman  of  the  parish  pleaded  with 
me  to  take  at  least  two  or  three.  I  asked 
what  was  to  become  of  the  others,  and  the 
answer  was  that  there  was  nothing  for  them 
but  the  workhouse.  What  to  do  I  did  not 
know.  I  made  it  a  matter  of  prayer,  but  all 
that  night  it  lay  upon  my  heart  a  great 
burden.  Next  morning  I  came  downstairs 
still  wondering  what  to  do.  Amongst  the 
letters  on  my  table  was  one  from  a  gentle- 
man at  Bowdon,  enclosing,  unasked,  a  cheque 
for  ^50.  In  those  days  £^0  was  an  excep- 
tionally large  sum  for  us  to  receive,  and  I 
took  the  letter  as  a  direct  word  from  God 
that  we  should  accept  the  care  of  the  chil- 
dren. We  did  so,  and  I  am  glad  to  say  every 
one  of  them  turned  out  well. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  73 

But  direct  answers  to  prayer  are  not  con- 
fined to  mere  gifts  of  money.  Over  and 
over  again  during  these  twenty-seven  years 
of  rescue  work  I  have  put  individual  cases 
before  God  and  asked  Him  to  deal  with 
them,  and  it  is  just  wonderful  how  He  has 
subdued  stubborn  wills  and  changed  hearts 
and  lives. 

Years  ago  there  came  to  the  Refuges  the 
son  of  a  man  known  to  the  Manchester 
police  as  "  Mike  the  devil."  Tom  was  as 
rough  a  customer  as  ever  I  saw,  and  for  a 
time  we  had  some  trouble  with  him.  But  a 
great  change  came  over  him,  and  I  have 
myself  no  doubt  it  was  the  result  of  personal 
pleading  with  God  on  his  behalf.  Tom  is 
now  an  ordained  minister  of  the  Gospel  in 
America,  There  is  no  end  to  the  cases  I 
could  give  of  that  kind.  They  all  point  to 
the  same  conclusion,  that  God  does  answer 
definite  prayer.  And  to-day,  after  twenty- 
seven  years  of  work,  I  praise  Him  for  it. 


VII 

By  the  Rev. 

R.  F.  HORTON,  M.A.,  D.a 


IT  has  sometimes  seemed  to  me  that  God 
does  not  intend  the  faith  in  prayer  to 
rest  upon  an  induction  of  instances.  The  an- 
swers, however  explicit,  are  not  of  the  kind 
to  bear  down  an  aggressive  criticism.  Your 
Christian  hves  a  Hfe  which  is  an  unbroken 
chain  of  prayers  offered  and  prayers  an- 
swered;  from  his  inward  view  the  demon- 
stration is  overwhelming.  But  do  you  ask 
for  the  evidences,  and  do  you  propose  to 
begin  to  pray  if  the  facts  are  convincing,  and 
to  refuse  the  practice  if  they  are  not?     Then 


*]6  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

you  may  find  the  evidences  evanescent  as  an 
evening  cloud,  and  the  facts  all  suscep- 
tible of  a  simple  rationalistic  explanation. 
*'  Prayer,"  says  an  old  Jewish  mystic,  ''  is  the 
moment  when  heaven  and  earth  kiss  each 
other."  It  is  futile  as  well  as  indelicate  to 
disturb  that  rapturous  meeting;  and  nothing 
can  be  brought  away  from  such  an  intrusion, 
nothing  of  any  value  except  the  resolve  to 
make  trial  for  oneself  of  the  '*  mystic  sweet 
communion." 

I  confess,  therefore,  that  I  read  examples 
of  answers  to  prayer  without  any  great 
interest,  and  refer  to  those  I  have  experi- 
enced myself  with  the  utmost  diffidence. 
Nay,  I  say  frankly  beforehand,  "  If  you  are 
concerned  to  disprove  my  statement,  and  to 
show  that  what  I  take  for  the  hand  of  God 
is  merely  the  cold  operation  of  natural  law, 
I  shall  only  smile.  My  own  conviction  will 
be  unchanged.  I  do  not  make  that  great 
distinction  between  the  hand  of  God  and 
natural  law,  and  I  have  no  wish  to  induce 
you  to  pray  by  an  accumulation  of  facts  — 
to  commend   to  you  the  mighty  secret  by 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  77 

showing  that  it  would  be  profitable  to  you, 
a  kind  of  Aladdin's  lamp  for  fulfilling  way- 
ward desires.  Natural  law,  the  hand  of 
God  !  Yes  !  I  unquestioningly  admit  that 
the  answers  to  prayer  come  generally  along 
lines  which  we  recognise  as  natural  law,  and 
would  perhaps  always  be  found  along  those 
lines  if  our  knowledge  of  natural  law  were 
complete.  Prayer  is  to  me  the  quick  and 
instant  recognition  that  all  law  is  God's  will, 
and  all  nature  is  in  God's  hand,  and  that  all 
our  welfare  lies  in  linking  ourselves  with  His 
will  and  placing  ourselves  in  His  hand 
through  all  the  operations  of  the  world  and 
life  and  time. 

Yet  I  will  mention  a  few  **  answers  to 
prayer,"  striking  enough  to  me.  One  Sun- 
day morning  a  message  came  to  me  before 
the  service  from  an  agonised  mother :  "  Pray 
for  my  child :  the  doctor  has  been  and  gives 
no  hope."  We  prayed,  the  church  prayed, 
with  the  mother's  agony,  and  with  the  faith  in 
a  present  Christ,  mighty  to  save.  Next  day, 
I  learned  that  the  doctor  who  had  given  the 
message  of  despair  in  the  morning  had  re- 


78  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

turned,  after  the  service,  and  said  at  once, 
"  A  remarkable  change  has  taken  place." 
The  child  recovered  and  still  lives. 

On  another  occasion,  I  was  summoned 
from  my  study  to  see  a  girl  who  was  dying 
of  acute  peritonitis.  I  hurried  away  to  the 
chamber  of  death.  The  doctor  said  that  he 
could  do  nothing  more.  The  mother  stood 
there  weeping.  The  girl  had  passed  beyond 
the  point  of  recognition.  But  as  I  entered 
the  room,  a  conviction  seized  me  that  the 
sentence  of  death  had  not  gone  out  against 
her.  I  proposed  that  we  should  kneel  down 
and  pray.  I  asked  definitely  that  she  should 
be  restored.  I  left  the  home,  and  learned 
afterwards  that  she  began  to  amend  almost 
at  once,  and  entirely  recovered ;  she  is  now 
quite  strong  and  well,  and  doing  her  share 
of  service  for  our  Lord. 

And  on  yet  another  occasion  I  was  hastily 
called  from  my  study  to  see  an  elderly  man, 
who  had  always  been  delicate  since  I  knew 
him ;  now  he  was  prostrated  with  bronchitis, 
and  the  doctor  did  not  think  that  he  could 
Hve.     It  chanced  that  I  had  just  been  study- 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  79 

ing  the  passage  which  contains  the  prayer  of 
Hezekiah  and  the  promise  made  to  him  of 
fourteen  additional  years  of  Hfe.  I  went  to 
the  sick  man  and  told  him  that  I  had  just 
been  reading  this,  and  asked  if  it  might  not 
be  a  ground  for  definite  prayer.  He  assented, 
and  we  entreated  our  God  for  His  mercy  in 
the  matter.  The  man  was  restored  and  is 
living  still. 

These  are  only  typical  instances  of  what  I 
have  frequently  seen.  Many  times,  no  doubt, 
I  have  prayed  for  the  recovery  of  the  sick 
and  the  prayer  has  not  been  answered.  And 
you,  dear  and  skeptical  reader,  may  say  if  you 
will  that  this  is  proof  positive  that  the  in- 
stances of  answered  prayers  are  mere  coin- 
cidences. You  may  say  it  and,  if  you  will, 
prove  it,  but  you  will  not  in  the  least  alter 
my  quiet  conviction;  for  the  answers  were 
given  to  me.  I  do  not  know  that  even  the 
subjects  of  these  recoveries  recognise  the 
agency  which  was  at  work.  To  me  all  this 
is  immaterial.  The  subjective  evidence  is 
all  that  was  designed,  and  that  is  sufficient, 
and  to  the  writer  conclusive. 


8o  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

With  reference  to  money  for  Christian 
work,  I  have  laboured  to  induce  my  own 
church  to  adopt  the  simple  view  that  we 
should  ask  not  men,  but  in  the  first  instance 
God,  the  owner  of  it  all,  for  what  we  want. 
I  am  thankful  to  say  that  some  of  them  now 
beheve  this,  and  bring  our  needs  to  Him 
very  simply  and  trustfully.  I  could  name 
many  instances  of  the  following  kind :  there 
is  a  threatened  deficit  in  the  funds  of  the 
mission,  or  an  extension  is  needed  and  we 
have  not  the  money.  The  sound  of  mis- 
giving is  heard ;  we  have  not  the  givers ; 
the  givers  have  given  all  they  can.  *'  Why 
not  trust  God?"  I  have  urged.  "  Why  not 
pray  openly  and  unitedly  —  and  believe?" 
The  black  cloud  of  debt  has  been  dissipated, 
or  the  necessary  extension  has  been  made. 

Oddly  enough,  some  people  have  said  to 
me,  "  Ah,  yours  is  a  rich  church,"  as  if  to 
imply  one  can  very  safely  ask  God  for  money 
when  one  has  the  people  at  hand  who  can 
give  it.  But  surely  this  is  a  question  of 
degree.  My  church  is  not  rich  enough  to 
give  one-tenth  of  what   it  gives,  tf  we  did 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  8i 

not  first  ask  God  for  it.  And  there  are 
churches  which  could  give  ten  times  what 
they  do  give,  if  only  the  plan  were  adopted 
of  first  asking  God  instead  of  going  to 
the  few  wealthy  people  and  trusting  to 
them. 

But  this  is  a  matter  of  statistics  and  a  little 
wearisome.     I  confess  I  am  unsatisfied  with 
answers  to  prayer  when  the  prayer  is  only 
for  these  carnal  and  visible  things,  which  are 
often,  in  boundless  love  and  pity,  withheld. 
The  constant  and  proper  things  to  pray  for 
are  precisely  those  the  advent  of  which  can- 
not be  observed  or  tabulated ;   that  the  king- 
dom may  come,  that  they  who  have  sinned, 
not  unto  death,  may  be  forgiven,  that   the 
eyes  of  Christian  men  may  be  enlightened, 
and  their  hearts  expanded  to  the  measure  of 
the   love   of  Christ.     Such  prayers  are    an- 
swered, but  the  answers  are  not  unveiled.     I 
remember  a  strange  instance  of  this.     I  was 
staying  with  a  gentleman  in   a  great  town, 
where  the  town  council,  of  which  he  was  a 
member,  had  just  decided  to  close  a  music- 
hall  which  was  exercising  a  pernicious  influ- 


82  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

ence.  The  decision  was  most  unexpected, 
because  a  strong  party  in  the  council  were 
directly  interested  in  the  hall.  But  to  my 
friend's  amazement  the  men  who  had  threat- 
ened opposition  came  in  and  quietly  voted 
for  withdrawing  the  licence.  Next  day  we 
were  speaking  about  modern  miracles ;  he, 
the  best  of  men,  expressed  the  opinion  that 
miracles  were  confined  to  Bible  times.  His 
wife  then  happened  to  mention  how,  on  the 
day  of  that  council  meeting,  she  and  some 
other  good  women  of  the  city  had  met  and 
continued  in  prayer  that  the  licence  might 
be  withdrawn.  I  ventured  to  ask  my  friend 
whether  this  was  not  the  explanation  of  what 
he  had  confessed  to  be  an  amazing  change 
of  front  on  the  part  of  the  opposition.  And, 
strange  to  say,  it  had  not  occurred  to  him 
—  though  an  avowed  believer  in  prayer  — 
to  connect  the  praying  women  and  that 
beneficent  vote. 

The  truth  is,  all  the  threads  of  good  which 
run  across  our  chequered  society,  all  the  im- 
pulses upward  and  onward,  all  the  invisible 
growths  in  goodness  and  grace,  are  answered 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  83 

prayers.  For  our  prayers  for  the  kingdom 
are  not  uttered  on  the  housetops ;  and  the 
kingdom  itself  cometh  not  with  observation. 

But  if  it  were  not  too  dehcate  a  subject  I 
could  recite  instances,  to  me  the  most  re- 
markable answers  to  prayer  in  my  experi- 
ence, of  changed  character  and  enlarged 
Christian  life,  resulting  from  definite  inter- 
cession. It  is  an  experiment  which  any 
loving  and  humble  soul  can  easily  make. 
Take  your  friends,  or  better  still  the  mem- 
bers of  the  church  to  which  you  belong,  and 
set  yourself  systematically  to  pray  for  them. 
Leave  alone  those  futile  and  often  misguided 
petitions  for  temporal  blessings,  or  even  for 
success  in  their  work,  and  plead  with  your 
God  in  the  terms  of  that  prayer  with  which 
Saint  Paul  bowed  his  knees  for  the  Ephesians. 
Ask  that  this  person,  or  these  persons,  known 
to  you,  may  have  the  enlightenment  and  ex- 
pansion of  the  Spirit,  the  quickened  love  and 
zeal,  the  vision  of  God,  the  profound  sym- 
pathy with  Christ,  which  form  the  true  Chris- 
tian life.  Pray  and  watch,  and  as  you  watch, 
still  pray.     And  you  will  see  a  miracle,  mar- 


84  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

vellous  as  the  springing  of  the  flowers  in 
April,  or  the  far-off  regular  rise  and  setting 
of  the  planets,  —  a  miracle  proceeding  before 
your  eyes,  a  plain  answer  to  your  prayer, 
and  yet  without  any  intervention  of  your 
voice  or  hand.  You  will  see  the  mysterious 
power  of  God  at  work  upon  these  souls  for 
which  you  pray.  And  by  the  subtle  move- 
ments of  the  Spirit  it  is  as  likely  as  not  that 
they  will  come  to  tell  you  of  the  divine  bless- 
ings which  have  come  to  them  in  reply  to 
your  unknown  prayers. 

But  there  are  some  whose  eyes  are  not  yet 
open  to  these  invisible  things  of  the  Spirit, 
which  are  indeed  the  real  things.  The  meas- 
ure of  faith  is  not  yet  given  them,  and  they 
do  not  recognise  that  web,  —  the  only  web 
which  will  last  when  the  loom  of  the  world  is 
broken,  —  the  web  of  which  the  warp  is  the 
will  of  God,  and  the  woof  the  prayers  of 
men.  For  these,  to  speak  of  the  whole  as 
answered  prayer  is  as  good  as  to  say  that  no 
prayer  is  answered  at  all.  If  they  are  to 
recognise  an  answer  it  must  be  some  tiny 
pattern,  a  sprig  of  flower,   or  an  ammonite 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  85 

figure  on  the  fabric.  Let  me  close,  there- 
fore, by  recounting  a  very  simple  answer  to 
prayer,  —  simple,  and  yet,  I  think  I  can  show, 
significant. 

Last  summer  I  was  in  Norway,  and  one  of 
the  party  was  a  lady  who  was  too  delicate 
to  attempt  great  mountain  excursions,  but 
found  an  infinite  compensation  in  rowing 
along  those  fringed  shores  of  the  fjord,  and 
exploring  those  interminable  brakes,  which 
escape  the  notice  of  the  passengers  on  board 
the  steamer.  One  day  we  had  followed  a 
narrow  fjord,  which  winds  into  the  folds  of 
the  mountains,  to  its  head.  There  we  had 
landed  and  pushed  our  way  through  the 
brush  of  birch  and  alder,  lost  in  the  mimic 
glades,  emerging  to  climb  miniature  moun- 
tains, and  fording  innumerable  small  rivers, 
which  rushed  down  from  the  perpetual 
snows.  Moving  slowly  over  the  ground  — 
veritable  explorers  of  a  virgin  forest  —  pluck- 
ing the  ruby  bunches  of  wild  raspberry,  or 
the  bilberries  and  whortleberries,  delicate  in 
bloom,  we  made  a  devious  track  which  it 
was  hard  or  impossible  to  retrace.     Suddenly 


86  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

my  companion  found  that  her  golosh  was 
gone.  That  might  seem  a  sHght  loss  and 
easily  replaced ;  not  at  all.  It  was  as  vital 
to  her  as  his  snowshoes  were  to  Nansen  on 
the  Polar  drift ;  for  it  could  not  be  replaced 
until  we  were  back  in  Bergen  at  the  end  of 
our  tour.  And  to  be  without  it  meant  an 
end  of  all  the  delightful  rambles  in  the 
spongy  mosses  and  across  the  liliputian 
streams,  which  for  one  at  least  meant  half 
the  charm  and  the  benefit  of  the  holiday. 
With  the  utmost  diligence,  therefore,  we 
searched  the  brake,  retraced  our  steps,  re- 
called each  precipitous  descent  of  heather- 
covered  rock,  and  every  sapling  of  silver 
birch  by  which  we  had  steadied  our  steps. 
We  plunged  deep  into  all  the  apparently 
bottomless  crannies,  and  beat  the  brushwood 
along  all  our  course.  But  neither  the  owner's 
eyes,  which  are  keen  as  needles,  nor  mine, 
which  are  not,  could  discover  any  sign  of 
the  missing  shoe.  With  woeful  countenances 
we  had  to  give  it  up  and  start  on  our  three 
miles'  row  along  the  fjord  to  the  hotel.  But 
in  the  afternoon  the  idea  came  to  me,  "  And 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  ^j 

why  not  ask  our  gracious  Father  for  guidance 
in  this  trifle  as  well   as  for  all  the  weightier 
things  which  we  are  constantly  committing 
to  His  care?     If  the   hairs  of  our  head   are 
all  numbered,  why  not  also  the  shoes  of  our 
feet?"     I  therefore  asked  Him  that  we  might 
recover  this    lost  golosh.     And    then  I  pro- 
posed that  we  should  row  back  to  the  place. 
How  magnificent  the   precipitous  mountains 
and   the    far   snow-fields   looked    that   after- 
noon !     How   insignificant  our   shallop,   and 
our  own  imperceptible  selves  in  that  majestic 
amphitheatre,    and    how   trifling    the   whole 
episode  might  seem  to  God  !     But  the  place 
was  one  where  we  had  enjoyed  many  singu- 
lar proofs  of  the  divine  love  which  shaped 
the  mountains  but  has  also  a  particular  care 
for  the  emmets  which    nestle  at  their   feet. 
And  I  was  ashamed  of  myself  for  ever  doubt- 
ing  the  particular  care   of   an   infinite   love. 
When  we  reached  the  end   of  the  fjord  and 
had  lashed  the  boat  to  the  shore,  I  sprang 
on  the  rocks  and  went,  I  know  not  how  or 
why,  to  one  spot,   not  far  from  the  water, 
a   spot  which  I    should    have   said  we   had 


88  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

searched  again  and  again  in  the  morning, 
and  there  lay  the  shoe  before  my  eyes,  ob- 
vious, as  if  it  had  fallen  from  heaven  ! 

I  think  I  hear  the  cold  laugh  of  prayerless 
men :  ''  And  that  is  the  kind  of  thing  on 
which  you  rest  your  belief  in  prayer;  a 
happy  accident.  Well,  if  you  are  super- 
stitious enough  to  attach  any  importance  to 
that,  you  would  swallow  anything !  "  And 
with  a  smile,  not,  I  trust,  scornful  or  im- 
patient, but  full  of  quiet  joy,  I  would  reply: 
"Yes,  if  you  will,  that  is  the  kind  of  thing; 
a  trifle  rising  to  the  surface  from  the  depths 
of  a  Father's  love  and  compassion — those 
depths  of  God  which  you  will  not  sound 
contain  marvels  greater  it  is  true ;  they  are, 
however,  ineffable,  for  the  things  of  the 
Spirit  will  only  be  known  to  men  of  the 
Spirit.  These  trifles  are  all  that  can  be  ut- 
tered to  those  who  will  not  search  and  see; 
trifles  indeed,  for  no  sign  shall  be  given  to 
this  generation;  which,  if  it  will  not  prove 
the  power  of  prayer  by  praying,  shall  not 
be  convinced  by  marshalled  instances  of  the 
answers  of  prayer." 


By  the  Rev. 

HUGH  PRICE  HUGHES,  M.A. 


V^OU  ask  me  to  give  my  experience  of 
1  answers  to  prayer.  I  have  never  had 
any  doubt  that  Dean  Milman  was  right 
when  he  said  that  personal  religion  be- 
comes impossible  if  prayer  is  not  answered. 
Neither  have  I  ever  been  able  to  appre- 
ciate the  so-called  scientific  objection  to 
prayer,  as  we  have  ample  experience  in 
the  activity  of  our  own  will  to  illustrate 
the  fact  that  invariable  laws  may  be  so 
manipulated  and  utilised  as  to  produce 
results   totally   different    from    those   which 


go  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

would    have   taken    place   if  some  free   will 
had  not  intervened  to  use  them. 

We  must  assume  that  God,  who  is  the 
Author  of  all  natural  laws,  can  with  infinite 
ease  manipulate  them  so  as  to  produce  any 
desired  result,  without  in  the  least  degree 
altering  their  character  or  interfering  with 
the  universal  reign  of  Law. 

However,  what  you  want  is  not  theory  but 
actual  experience.  I  will  not  refer,  therefore, 
to  the  stupendous  proofs  that  God  does 
answer  prayer,  presented  by  Mr.  Miiller  of 
Bristol  in  his  immense  orphanages,  or  to 
similar  unmistakable  results  in  the  various 
philanthropic  institutions  of  Dr.  Cullis  of 
Boston.  I  will  go  at  once  to  my  own  per- 
sonal experiences,  and  mention  one  or  two 
facts  that  have  come  under  my  own  obser- 
vation. There  are  a  great  many,  but  I  will 
simply  give  a  few  typical  cases. 

A  good  many  years  ago  I  was  conducting 
a  special  mission  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Chelsea.  It  is  my  custom  on  these  occa- 
sions to  invite  members  of  the  congrega- 
tion to  send   me  in  writing  special  requests 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  91 

for  the  conversion  of  unsaved  relatives  or 
friends.  On  the  Tuesday  night,  among 
many  other  requests  for  prayer,  was  one 
from  a  daughter  for  the  conversion  of  her 
father.  It  was  presented  in  due  course  with 
the  rest,  but  no  one  at  that  moment  knew 
the  special  circumstances  of  the  case,  ex- 
cept the  writer.  On  the  following  Friday 
I  received  another  request  from  the  same 
woman ;  but  now  it  was  a  request  for  praise, 
describing  the  circumstances  under  which 
the  prayer  had  been  answered,  and  I  read 
the  wonderful  story  to  the  congregation. 

It  appeared  that  this  girl's  father  was  an 
avowed  infidel  who  had  not  been  to  any 
place  of  worship  for  many  years,  and  he 
disliked  the  subject  of  religion  so  intensely 
that  he  ultimately  forbade  his  Christian 
daughter  in  London  to  write  to  him,  as 
she  was  continually  bringing  in  references 
to  Christ.  On  the  particular  Tuesday  even- 
ing in  question,  that  infidel  father  was  on 
his  way  to  a  theatre  in  some  provincial 
town,  more  than  a  hundred  miles  from  Lon- 
don.     As   he   was   walking   to   the   theatre, 


92  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

there  was  a  sudden  shower  of  rain  which 
drove  him  for  shelter  into  the  vestibule  of 
a  chapel  where  a  week-night  service  was 
being  held.  The  preacher  in  the  pulpit 
was  a  Boanerges,  whose  loud  voice  pene- 
trated into  the  lobby,  and  there  was  some- 
thing in  what  he  said  that  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  infidel  and  induced  him 
to  enter  the  chapel.  He  became  more  and 
more  interested  as  the  sermon  proceeded,  and 
before  its  close  he  was  deeply  convinced 
of  sin,  and  in  true  penitence  sought  mercy 
from  Jesus  Christ.  I  need  scarcely  say  to 
any  one  who  knows  anything  of  the  love 
of  God,  that  this  prayer  was  speedily  an- 
swered, and  he  went  home  rejoicing  in 
divine  forgiveness.  The  next  day  he  wrote 
to  his  daughter  in  London  telling  her  that 
he  had  set  out  on  the  previous  evening 
intending  to  visit  the  theatre,  but  had 
actually  found  his  way  into  a  chapel,  where 
his  sins  had  been  forgiven  and  his  heart 
changed.  He  wrote  at  once  to  tell  her  the 
good  news,  and  he  assured  her  that  he 
would  now  be   only  too  glad  to  hear   from 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  93 

her  as  often  as  she  could  write  to  him.  These 
facts  were  communicated  through  me  to  the 
congregation,  and  we  all  gave  thanks  to  God. 

Of  course  it  may  be  said  that  the  conver- 
sion of  this  man,  who  had  not  been  into  a 
place  of  worship  for  more  than  a  dozen  years, 
was  a  mere  accident,  and  that  its  coming 
at  the  very  time  we  were  praying  for  him  was 
a  mere  coincidence.  But  we  need  not  quarrel 
about  words.  All  we  need  to  establish  is, 
that  such  delightful  accidents  and  such 
blessed  coincidences  are  continually  occur- 
ring in  the  experience  of  all  real  Christians. 
I  may  add  generally,  that  it  is  our  custom 
to  present  written  requests  for  prayer  and 
written  requests  for  praise  at  the  devotional 
meetings  of  the  West  London  Mission  every 
Friday  night.  This  has  now  gone  on  with- 
out interruption  for  more  than  nine  years, 
and  I  scarcely  remember  a  prayer-meeting 
at  which  we  have  not  had  some  request  for 
praise  on  account  of  prayer  answered. 

It  may  be  argued,  however,  that  all  such 
cases  are  purely  subjective,  and  that  they 
take  place  in  the  mysterious  darkness  and 


94  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

silence  of  the  human  heart.  Let  my  next 
illustration,  then,  be  of  a  much  more  tangible 
character.  Let  it  refer  to  pounds,  shillings, 
and  pence. 

Not  long  ago  the  West  London  Mission 
was  greatly  in  want  of  money,  as  has  gen- 
erally been  its  experience  since  it  began.  It 
would  seem  as  though  God  could  not  trust  us 
with  any  margin.  Perhaps  if  we  had  a  con- 
siderable balance  in  the  bank  we  should  put 
our  trust  in  that,  instead  of  realising  every 
moment  our  absolute  dependence  on  God. 
Like  the  Children  of  Israel  in  the  Wilderness, 
we  have  had  supplies  of  manna  just  suffi- 
cient for  immediate  need.  Always  in  want, 
always  tempted  to  be  anxious,  it  has  always 
happened  at  the  last  moment,  when  the  case 
seemed  absolutely  desperate,  that  help  has 
been  forthcoming,  sometimes  from  the  most 
unexpected  quarter.  But  a  short  time  ago 
the  situation  appeared  to  be  unusually  alarm- 
ing, and  I  invited  my  principal  colleague  to 
meet  me  near  midnight  —  the  only  time  when 
we  could  secure  freedom  from  interruption 
and  rest  from  our  own  incessant  work. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  95 

We  spent  some  time,  in  the   quietness  of 
that  late  hour,  imploring  God  to  send  us  one 
thousand  pounds  for  His  work  by  a  particular 
day.      In  the  course  of  the  meeting  one  of 
our  number  burst  forth   into   rapturous   ex- 
pressions of  gratitude,  as  he  was  irresistibly 
convinced   that   our   prayer  was    heard  and 
would    be    answered.      I    confess    I   did    not 
share  his  absolute  confidence,  and  the  abso- 
lute confidence  of  my  wife  and  some  others. 
I    believed    with    trembhng.      I     am    afraid 
I   could   say   nothing   more   than  "  Lord,  I 
believe,  help  Thou  my  unbelief."      The  ap- 
pointed day  came.     I  went  to  the  meeting  at 
which  the  sum  total  would  be  announced.     It 
appeared  that  in  a  very  short  time  and   in 
very  extraordinary  ways   nine  hundred   and 
ninety  pounds   had  been  sent  to  the  West 
London  Mission.     I  confess  that,  as  a  theo- 
logian I  was  perplexed.     We  had  asked  for 
a  thousand  pounds  —  there  was  a  deficiency 
of  ten.     I  could  not  understand  it.     I  went 
home,  trying  to  explain  the  discrepancy.     As 
I    entered   my   house   and   was   engaged  in 
taking  off  my  hat  and  coat,  I  noticed  a  letter 


g6  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

on  the  table  in  the  hall.  I  remembered  that 
it  had  been  lying  there  when  I  went  out,  but 
I  was  in  a  great  hurry  and  did  not  stop  to 
open  it.  I  took  it  up,  opened  it,  and  dis- 
covered that  it  contained  a  cheque  for  ten 
pounds  for  the  West  London  Mission,  bring- 
ing up  the  amount  needed  for  that  day  to 
the  exact  sum  which  we  had  named  in  our 
midnight  prayer-meeting.  Of  course  this 
also  may  be  described  as  a  mere  coincidence, 
but  all  we  want  is  coincidences  of  this  sort. 
The  name  is  nothing,  the  fact  is  everything, 
and  there  have  been  many  such  facts. 

Let  me  give  one  other  in  reference  to 
money,  as  this  kind  of  illustration  will  per- 
haps, more  than  any  other,  impress  those 
who  are  disposed  to  be  cynical  and  to  scoff. 
I  was  engaged  in  an  effort  to  build  Sunday 
schools  in  the  south  of  London.  A  bene- 
volent friend  promised  a  hundred  pounds 
if  I  could  get  nine  hundred  pounds  more, 
within  a  week.  I  did  my  utmost,  and 
by  desperate  efforts,  with  the  assistance  of 
friends,  did  get  eight  hundred  pounds,  but 
not  one  penny  more.      We    reached    Satur- 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  97 

day,  and  the  terms  of  all  the  promises  were 
that  unless  we  obtained  a  thousand  pounds 
that  week  we  could   not   proceed  with   the 
building  scheme,  and   the    entire    enterprise 
might  have   been  postponed  for  years,  and, 
indeed,    never    accomplished    on    the    large 
scale  we  desired.     On  the  Saturday  morning 
one  of  my  principal   church   officers   called, 
and  said  he  had  come  upon  an  extraordinary 
business:     that  a    Christian   woman  in    that 
neighbourhood    whom    I    did    not   know,   of 
whom  I  had  never  heard,  who  had  no  con- 
nection whatever  with  my  church,  had  that 
morning  been  lying  awake  in   bed,  and   an 
extraordinary   impression    had    come    in   to 
her  that  she  was  at  once  to  give    me   one 
hundred  pounds !     She  naturally  resisted  so 
extraordinary  an  impression  as  a  caprice  or 
a  delusion.     But  it  refused  to  leave  her;    it 
became  stronger  and  stronger,  until   at  last 
she  was    deeply  convinced   that  it  was   the 
will   of  God.      What    made   it   more    extra- 
ordinary was   the   fact   that   she    had    never 
before   had,   and    would,   in   all   probability, 
never  again  have  one  hundred  pounds  at  her 

7 


98  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

disposal  for  any  such  purpose.  But  that 
morning  she  sent  me  the  money  through 
my  friend,  who  produced  it  in  the  form  of 
crisp  Bank  of  England  notes.  From  that 
day  to  this  I  have  no  idea  whatever  who 
she  was,  as  she  wished  to  conceal  her  name 
from  me.  Whether  she  is  alive  or  in  heaven 
I  cannot  say;  but  what  I  do  know  is  that 
this  extraordinary  answer  to  our  prayers 
secured  the  rest  of  the  money,  and  led  to 
the  erection  of  one  of  the  finest  schools 
in  London,  in  which  there  are  more  than  a 
thousand  scholars  to-day. 

Let  me  give  one  other  illustration  in  a 
different  sphere.  God  has  answered  our 
prayers  again  and  again  by  saving  those  in 
whom  we  are  interested,  and  by  sending  us 
money.  He  has  also  answered  prayer  for 
suitable  agents  to  do  His  work. 

Twelve  months  ago  I  was  sitting  in  my 
study  at  a  very  late  hour;  the  rest  of  the 
household  had  gone  to  bed.  I  was  par- 
ticularly conscious  at  that  time  that  I  greatly 
needed  a  lay  agent,  who  could  help  me 
in   work    among    the    thousands    of    young 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  99 

men   from  business  houses  who  throng  St. 
James's    Hall.      Several    of    our   staff    who 
could  render  efficient  service  in  that  direc- 
tion were  fully  occupied   in    other   parts  of 
the   Mission.      I    prayed    very   earnestly   to 
God,    in    my    loneliness    and    helplessness; 
and  whilst  I  was  praying,  an  assurance  was 
given  me   that   God   had   heard   my  prayer. 
By   the    first  post   on   the   next   morning   I 
received   a  letter  from   a   man  whom  I  had 
never  met,  requesting  an  interview.      I  saw 
him.       It    turned    out    that   he   was    a   staff 
officer  in  the  Salvation  Army,  and  formerly 
a  Methodist;    and  that  for  two  years  he  had 
been  longing  for  a  sphere  of  work  among 
young    men.       He     had    been    himself    in 
a  Manchester   business  house,   and   he   was 
extremely  anxious   for  work   among   young 
fellows  in  the  great  business  establishments. 
For  various  reasons  a  development  of  work 
in   that    direction,    although    it   commanded 
the  sympathy  of  the  heads  of  the  Salvation 
Army,   could   not  be  undertaken  just  then; 
and  while  he  was  praying  upon  the  subject, 
it  seemed  to  him  as  though  a  definite  voice 


100  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

said,  "Offer  yourself  to  Mr.  Hugh  Price 
Hughes."  In  obedience  to  that  voice  he 
came,  and  he  is  with  us  now.  He  has 
already  gathered  round  him  a  large  number 
of  young  men;  and  at  our  last  Public 
Reception  of  new  members  I  received  into 
the  mission  church  forty-two  young  men  of 
this  class,  who  had  been  brought  to  Christ, 
or  to  active  association  with  His  Church, 
through  the  agency  of  the  man  whom  God 
so  promptly  sent  me  in  the  hour  of  my 
need. 

Nothing  that  I  have  said  will  in  the  least 
degree  surprise  earnest  Christians  and  Chris- 
tian ministers.  Such  experiences  as  these 
are  the  commonplace  of  real  and  active 
Christianity. 


IX 

By  the  Rev. 

J.  CLIFFORD,  M.A.,  D.D. 


IMMEDIATELY  after  my  acceptance  of 
the  pastorate  of  the  church  to  which  I 
still  minister,  I  arranged  to  continue  and 
broaden  my  training  by  attending  Science 
Classes  at  University  College,  London.  It 
was  in  the  year  1858.  The  day  of  science 
was  in  its  briUiant  and  arresting  dawn. 
Professor  Huxley  had  been  lecturing  on 
biology  at  the  Royal  School  of  Mines  for 
nearly  four  years,  and  his  bold  and  masterly 
descriptions  of  "  Man's  Place  in  Nature," 
given   to   working    men,   had   stirred   many 


102  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

minds.  Darwin's  ''  Origin  of  Species  "  ap- 
peared in  the  following  year.  The  young 
scientific  spirit  was  daring  and  aggressive ; 
and  scientific  methods,  though  feared  in 
most  quarters,  were  demanding  and  winning 
confidence.  I  was  sure  science  was  one  of 
the  formative  forces  of  the  future,  and 
therefore  it  seemed  to  me  the  teachers  of 
Christianity  of  the  next  half-century  would 
do  well  to  make  themselves  practically  ac- 
quainted with  the  methods  pursued  by 
scientific  men,  as  well  as  conversant  with 
the  results  of  scientific  work. 

One  of  Huxley's  maxims  was  "  The  man 
of  science  has  learnt  to  believe  in  justifica- 
tion by  verification."  Certainly!  and  why 
not?  The  Christian  is  bidden  by  the  teacher 
who  ranks  next  to  Jesus  Christ,  our  one  and 
only  Master,  to  "  prove  all  things,  and  hold 
fast  that  which  is  good."  Human  experience 
is  always  verifying  truth  and  exposing  false- 
hood. New  forces  are  set  to  work  in  the 
lives  of  men,  and  offer  us  their  effects  for 
examination.  New  acts  repeated  lead  to  new 
habits,  and  new  habits  make  a  new  character. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  103 

If  the  gardener  inserts  a  "  bud  "  in  the  branch 
of  a  growing  brier,  and  after  a  while  beholds 
the  beauty  and  inhales  the  fragrance  of  the 
"  Gloire  de  Dijon"  rose;  if  the  surgeon 
"  operates  "  one  day,  and  a  little  while  after- 
wards sees  that  the  forces  he  has  freed  from 
the  disabilities  of  disease  are  moving  forward 
on  their  healing  mission;  so  the  Christian 
pastor  may  suggest  a  truth,  inspire  a  new 
habit,  direct  to  a  new  attitude  of  spirit, 
secure  an  uplift  of  soul,  and  afterwards  trace 
the  effect  of  these  acts  on  the  growth  and 
development  of  character,  and  on  the  quan- 
tity and  quality  of  the  service  given  to  the 
kingdom  of  righteousness  and  peace  and  joy 
in  the  Holy  Ghost.  "  Experiments  "  in  the 
field  of  human  nature  yield  as  really  verifi- 
able results  as  those  that  are  given  in  the 
nursery  of  the  gardener  or  the  laboratory  of 
the  chemist. 

But  contact  with  scientific  methods  not 
only  suggested  that  the  pastorate  would 
afford  abundant  opportunities  for  verifying 
the  features  and  characteristics  of  the  spirit 
of  life  in  Jesus  Christ,  by  a  direct  appeal  to 


104  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

facts  in  the  manifold  experiences  of  Chris- 
tian men ;  it  also  changed  the  point  of  view, 
so  that,  instead  of  giving  the  first  place 
amongst  *'  answers  to  prayer "  to  detached 
and  easily  reported  incidents,  that  rank  was 
assigned  to  experiences  showing  that  prayer 
is  one  of  the  chief  of  the  unseen  forces  in 
character-building,  in  deepening  humility,  in 
broadening  sympathy,  in  preserving  the 
heart  tender  and  sensitive  to  human  suffer- 
ing, in  quickening  aspiration,  and  giving 
the  note  of  soul  to  a  man's  work  and 
influence. 

The  materials  sustaining  that  conclusion 
were  abundant  in  the  early  years  of  my 
ministry;  notably  in  one  case  I  can  never 
forget.  On  the  first  Sabbath  evening  of  my 
ministry  I  was  preaching  on  the  words  "  Be 
ye  reconciled  to  God."  Amongst  the  listen- 
ers was  one  who  had  entered  the  house  of 
prayer  without  any  sense  of  alienation  from 
God  or  hunger  for  His  revelation,  and,  as 
she  afterwards  confessed,  merely  to  please 
her  sister.  But  "  the  Lord  opened  her 
heart  to  give  heed  to  the  things  that  were 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  105 

spoken,"  so  that  she  forthwith  sought  and 
found  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ. 

Nor  did  she  only  obtain  peace.  With 
Wordsworth  she  could  say: 

**  I  bent  before  Thy  gracious  throne 

And  asked  for  peace  with  suppliant  knee, 
And  peace  was  given,  nor  peace  alone, 
But  faith  and  hope  and  ecstasy." 

Faith  and  hope,  ecstasy  and  prayer,  were 
the  outstanding  features  of  her  new  life. 
She  had  little  time  for  special  acts  of  Chris- 
tian service,  and  scant  means  wherewith  to 
enrich  the  Church;  but,  according  to  the 
witness  of  those  who  had  known  her  long- 
est, her  character  was  clad  in  entirely  new 
charms,  and  her  spirit  was  fired  and  filled 
with  new  energies.  She  grew  in  experience 
of  the  grace  and  love  of  God,  and  became 
at  home  with  God  in  the  deepest  sense, 
and  seemed  rarely,  if  ever,  absent  from  her 
chosen  dwelling-place.  Her  strongest  feel- 
ing was  for  God,  all  investing,  all  encircling; 
and  with  reverent  freedom  and  sweet  security 
she  lived  and  moved  and  had  her  being  in 


io6  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

communion  with  the  eternal  Father.  Prayer 
was  not  a  task  for  specific  occasions ;  it  was 
the  breath  of  her  Hfe.  It  was  not  a  wrestle 
or  a  struggle ;  it  was  an  uplifting  of  her 
being  into  a  fellowship  with  God.  It  did  not 
shrivel  into  a  litany  of  petitions ;  it  was  sus- 
tained aspiration ;  and  aspiration  is  a  large 
part  of  achievement;  it  was  deepest  satis- 
faction with  God,  and  His  will  and  His 
work :  and  such  satisfaction  is  itself  a  source 
of  patient  strength  and  a  preparation  for 
victory. 

Nor  was  the  effect  limited.  Her  nature 
received  a  refinement,  an  elevation,  a  beauty 
that  triumphed  over  the  physical  features, 
and  shone  out  with  a  glory  that  is  not  seen 
on  sea  or  shore.  The  expression  of  her 
face  seemed  to  be  from  God.  A  trans- 
figuring radiance  came  from  within  as  she 
thought  on  the  wonders  and  delighted  in 
the  treasures  of  the  gospel  of  God.  Hers 
was  a  noble  life.  Like  Martha,  she  was 
engaged  in  "much  serving;"  but  yet  was 
never  cumbered  and  worn  with  it,  because, 
like  Mary,  she  sat  daily  at  the  Master's  feet, 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  107 

and  listened  to  His  words,  and  received  His 
sustaining  strength.  She  was  as  sweetly  un- 
selfish as  the  flowers,  and  gave  herself  and 
her  '*  all  "  to  Christ,  like  the  widow  of  the 
gospels.  Meekness  and  humility  clothed  her 
with  their  loveliest  robes.  I  never  knew  a 
purer  spirit.  She  always  breathed  the  soft- 
ness and  gentleness  of  the  Saviour,  and  yet 
I  have  seen  her  weak  body  quiver  and  throb 
with  its  anguish  of  desire  for  the  salvation 
of  the  lost.  Faithful  unto  death,  she  realised 
the  support  and  joy  of  the  Christian's  hope, 
and  gently  as  leaves  are  shed  by  the  flower 
that  has  finished  its  course,  she  fell  into  the 
arms  of  Jesus ;  and  as  Deborah,  Rebekah's 
nurse,  was  buried  under  the  "  oak  of  weep- 
ing" amid  afl"ectionate  regrets  and  sweet 
memories,  so  this  Christian  servant  was  laid 
in  the  grave  with  tears  of  real  sorrow  from 
those  whom  she  had  served  so  faithfully  and 
long,  as  well  as  from  friends  who  had  been 
gladdened  and  fortified  in  the  faith  of  Christ 
by  her  sweet,  earnest,  and  beautiful  Christian 
life.  That  day  is  now  far  ofl",  but  the  influ- 
ence of  her  prayer-filled  life  still  feeds  faith 


io8  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

in  God  as  the  Hearer  and  the  Answerer  of 
Prayer. 

About  the  same  time  and  in  the  same 
spiritual  laboratory  I  was  called  to  observe 
the  following  processes.  A  woman,  the  wife 
of  a  blacksmith,  was  led  by  the  gospel  of 
Christ  into  the  joy  of  salvation.  Her  ex- 
perience of  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  was 
vivid  and  full.  She  knew  little  of  doubt 
concerning  herself,  but  she  was  full  of  solici- 
tude for  her  husband  and  children ;  for  she 
had  a  very  heavy  burden  to  carry,  and  her 
heart  was  sore  stricken.  Her  husband  was 
a  drunkard.  When  sober  he  was  true,  de- 
voted, and  loving;  but  when  he  fell  into 
intemperance  he  became  hard,  harsh,  and 
even  violent.  But  never  did  the  brave  and 
trustful  wife  cease  to  hope  or  cease  to  pray. 
In  the  darkest  hours  she  begged  for  the  con- 
version of  her  husband,  and  felt  sure  that 
God  would  respond  to  her  supplications. 
That  was  her  habitual  mood,  her  supreme 
desire,  her  living  prayer;  and  I  could  see 
that  this  very  disposition  developed  her  saint- 
liness,  deepened  her   affection  for  her  hus- 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  109 

band,  and  gave  increased  beauty  to  her 
family  life,  as  well  as  added  to  her  useful- 
ness in  the  Church. 

One  day,  in  the  course  of  my  pastoral 
visits,  I  called  at  the  blacksmith's  home. 
Scarcely  was  the  threshold  crossed  when  the 
husband  rushed  in,  wild,  angry,  and  violent, 
the  prey  of  intoxicants.  But  before  he  had 
proceeded  far  the  wife  approached  him, 
flung  her  arms  around  him,  called  him  by 
name,  and  said :  "  Ah,  God  will  give  you  to 
me  yet."  Saint  Ambrose  told  Monica,  when 
she  went  to  him,  sad  and  desponding  about 
her  son,  ''  God  would  not  forget  the  prayers 
of  such  a  mother,"  and  Augustine  came, 
though  late  in  his  young  manhood,  into  the 
kingdom  and  patience  of  Jesus  Christ.  So  I 
felt  the  earnest  pleadings  of  this  true  wife 
and  mother  would  not  be  forgotten  of  God, 
but  that,  according  to  her  own  beautiful 
saying,  God  would  *'  give  her  husband  to 
her;  "  for  she  did  not  think  he  was  com- 
pletely hers  whilst  he  was  under  the  do- 
minion of  intoxicants,  —  give  him  to  her 
freed   from   that    depraving    and    desolating 


no  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

slavery.  And  it  was  so.  For  he,  too,  be- 
came a  Christian,  and  they  together  effec- 
tively served  their  generation  according  to 
the  will  of  God,  **  turning  men  from  dark- 
ness to  light,  and  from  the  power  of  Satan 
unto  God." 

There  recurs  to  me  the  image  of  a  visitor 
who  called  one  Sunday  evening  in  1862,  and 
who  wished  to  know  what  he  was  to  do  in 
order  to  control  and  suppress  an  ungovern- 
able temper.  For  years  it  had  tortured  him 
past  all  bearing,  and,  what  was  worse,  for 
years  it  had  been  a  source  of  pain  and  dis- 
comfort in  his  home.  When  his  anger  was 
kindled  he  was  by  his  own  confession  a 
terror  to  wife  and  children,  and,  seeing  that 
he  had  recently  become  a  Christian,  he  felt 
acutely  the  stain  such  actions  fixed  on  gar- 
ments that  should  have  been  unspotted  by 
the  world.  "What  must  I  do?  I  can't  go 
on  in  this  way,  and  yet  though  I  feel  it  is 
wrong  I  can't  help  myself." 

The  first  suggestion  I  ventured  was  based 
on  the  regard  he  had  expressed  for  his 
pastor.     "  What  would  be  the  effect,"  said  I, 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  hi 

"  on  you,  if  I  were  to  appear  at  the  moment 
the  storm  was  about  to  burst?     Think  !  " 

He  thought,  and  then  said,  "  It  would  n't 
burst.     I  should  stop  it." 

''Well,  then,  try  this  plan.  Force  your- 
self at  the  moment  of  peril  into  the  conscious 
presence  of  God,  and  say,  as  you  feel  the 
uprising  passion,  *  O  God,  make  me  master 
of  myself.'  Pray  that  prayer;  and  pray, 
morning  by  morning,  that  you  may  so  pray 
in  your  time  of  need ;  and  in  due  season  you 
will  obtain  the  perfect  mastery  of  yourself 
you  seek."  He  promised.  I  watched.  He 
prayed.  He  conquered;  once,  twice,  thrice, 
and  then  failed ;  but  he  renewed  the  attempt, 
and  triumphed  again,  and  years  afterwards  I 
knew  him  as  one  of  the  most  serene  of  men ; 
and  when  he  died,  no  phase  of  his  character 
stood  out  more  distinctively  than  his  perfect 
self-control,  and  no  fact  in  his  life  was  re- 
membered with  deeper  gratitude  by  his 
bereaved  wife  than  that  memorable  victory 
won  by  prayer  in  the  early  days  of  his  disci- 
pleship  to  the  Lord  Jesus. 

From  the  beginning  of  my  ministry  I  have 


112  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

made  it  my  business  to  offer  advice  and  aid 
to  young  men  and  maidens  assailed  with 
doubts  and  fears  concerning  the  revelation 
of  God  in  Christ,  hindered  at  the  outset  by 
misconceptions  of  the  *'  way  of  salvation," 
and  perplexed  by  confused  and  contradictory 
teaching.  Hundreds  of  young  men  (and 
within  the  last  ten  years  especially,  many 
young  women)  have  described  to  me  their 
difficulties  as  they  have  reached  the  stage 
described  by  Roscoe  in  the  words,  '*  There 
are  times  when  faith  is  weak  and  the  heart 
yearns  for  knowledge." 

Here  is  a  *'  case "  chosen  from  a  large 
number  of  similar  facts.  A  young  man  came 
to  tell  me  the  somewhat  familiar  story,  that 
the  first  fervours  of  his  religious  life  had 
cooled  down,  his  early  raptures  were  gone, 
and  the  sense  of  peace  and  bounding  free- 
dom, and  of  all-sufficing  strength  in  God, 
had  departed  with  them.  The  certainties  of 
the  opening  months  or  years  of  the  Christian 
pilgrimage  had  given  place  to  torturing  ques- 
tions, such  as,  ''Am  I  not  deceived?  After 
all,  is  Chrisrtianity  true?     What  are  its  real 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  113 

contents?  What  is  inspiration?  Did  mir- 
acles happen?"  etc.,  etc.  Week  after  week 
we  reasoned  and  argued,  and  months  passed 
in  a  struggle  whose  usefulness  no  one  could 
register,  and  whose  issue  no  one  could 
forecast. 

But  it  "  happened,"  as  these  conversations 
were  going  on,  that  he  was  "  drawn "  into 
what  I  may  call  a  ''  prayer  circle,"  privately 
carried  on  by  a  small  group  of  young  men 
who  were  not  unacquainted  with  such  con- 
flicts as  those  which  then  engaged  his 
powers.  He  joined  it,  and  by-and-by  felt 
its  influence.  He  was  lifted  into  another 
atmosphere,  and  breathed  a  clearer,  sunnier 
air.  His  misgivings  were  slowly  displaced 
by  missionary  enthusiasm,  and  his  fears  by 
a  stronger  faith;  and  yet  he  had  not  solved 
the  problems  suggested  by  the  person  of 
Christ,  or  found  the  secret  of  the  Incar- 
nation, or  explained  the  mystery  of  the 
Atonement.  But  he  had  been  led  to  set 
the  full  force  of  his  nature  on  communion 
with  God;  and  prayer  had  quickened  the 
sense  for   spiritual   realities,   for   the   recog- 


114  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

nition  of  the  infinite  value  of  the  human 
soul,  and  for  the  wonder  and  splendour 
of  God's  salvation.  In  that  realm  of  prayer, 
character  was  altered,  the  aim  of  life  was 
altered,  the  will  had  a  new  goal,  and  so 
the  questions  of  the  intellect  fell  into  their 
true  place  in  reference  to  the  whole  of  the 
questions  of  life.  Emerson  writes,  "When 
all  is  said  and  done,  the  rapt  saint  is  found 
the  only  logician."  It  is  he  who  thinks  the 
most  sanely  and  dwells  nearest  the  central 
truths  of  life  and  being.  It  is  he  who 
becomes  serenely  acquiescent  in  the  agnos- 
ticism of  the  Bible,  and  realises  that  revela- 
tion must  contain  many  things  past  finding 
out,  whilst  the  Spirit,  who  is  the  revealer, 
gives  us  the  best  assurances  of  the  certitude 
and  clearness  of  what  it  is  most  important 
for  us  to  know. 

So  often  have  I  seen  this  rest-giving  effect 
on  the  intellect,  of  the  lifting  of  the  life  into 
communion  with  God,  that  I  cannot  hesitate 
to  regard  it  as  a  law  of  the  life  of  man,  and 
yet  I  must  add  that  I  do  not  think  it  wise  to 
meet  those  who  ask  our  aid  in  the  treatment 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  115 

of  their  mental  perplexities  merely,  or  at 
first,  with  the  counsel  to  pray.  Most  likely 
they  will  misunderstand  it,  and  it  will  be- 
come to  them  a  stone  of  stumbling  and  a 
rock  of  offence.  We  had  better,  if  we  are 
able,  meet  them  first  on  their  own  ground, 
that  of  the  intellect,  and  meet  them  with 
frankness  and  sympathy,  with  knowledge 
and  tact;  and  yet  seek  by  the  spirit  we 
breathe,  and  the  associations  into  which  we 
introduce  them,  to  raise  them  where  the 
Saviour's  beatitude  shall  become  an  experi- 
ence: "Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  for 
they  shall  see  God." 

Prayer  has  often  proved  itself  an  infallible 
recipe  for  dejection.  A  man  of  culture  and 
wealth  was  for  a  long  time  pursued  by  what 
seemed  to  him  an  intolerable  and  invariable 
melancholy.  He  sought  relief  near  and  far, 
and  sought  in  vain.  He  became  a  source  of 
anxiety  to  his  friends.  He  went  away  to 
Bellagio,  goaded  by  the  same  restlessness, 
but  its  lovely  surroundings  did  not  heal, 
its  soft  airs  did  not  soothe.  No !  All  was 
dark  and  repellent.     Even  prayer  seemed  of 


ii6  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

no  use.  God  had  forgotten  him.  He  was 
cast  off  as  reprobate.  His  soul  was  dis- 
quieted within  him.  The  burden  of  his 
misery  was  more  than  he  could  carry.  He 
threatened  to  take  away  his  life.  But  in 
his  despair  he  still  clung  to  his  God;  and 
at  last,  as  in  this  desperate,  and  yet  not 
altogether  hopeless  or  prayerless  mood,  he 
read  a  sermon  on  "  Elijah  as  a  brave  prophet 
tired  of  life ; "  hope  was  reborn  and  joy 
restored,  and  as  Bunyan's  pilgrim  lost  his 
burden  at  the  cross,  so  this  Elijah  escaped 
from  his  tormentors,  and  came  forth  and 
dwelt  in  the  light  of  God's  countenance. 
It  was  the  prayer  of  a  weak  and  struggling 
faith;  but  God  did  not  turn  it  away,  nor 
reject  the  voice  of  his  supplication. 
What  abundant  witness  that 

"  More  things  are  wrought  by  prayer 
Than  this  world  dreams  of" 

could  be  supplied  by  pastors  and  elders  who 
have  visited  the  widow  and  the  fatherless, 
the  sick  and  suffering  in  their  afflictions. 
One  picture  comes  to  me  from  the  crowded 
past,    of    a   strong    and    victorious,    though 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  117 

much  enduring  saint.  Crippled  by  disease, 
she  did  not  rise  from  her  bed  unaided  for 
more  than  seven  years.  She  was  always 
in  pain,  sometimes  heavy  and  dull,  but  not 
infrequently  keen  and  sharp.  Yet  through 
all  these  years,  she  not  only  did  not  com- 
plain, but  she  had  such  an  overflow  of 
quiet  cheerfulness  and  of  deep  interest  in 
life  that  she  distributed  her  gladness  to 
others  and  made  them  partakers  of  her 
serenity.  You  could  not  detain  her  in  talk 
about  herself,  her  ailments,  her  broken  plans, 
her  manifold  disappointments.  No!  she 
would  compel  you  to  talk  of  the  Church, 
its  schools,  its  missions,  its  various  activi- 
ties ;  of  societies  and  movements  for  get- 
ting rid  of  social  evils,  such  as  intemperance 
and  impurity.  Sometimes  the  theme  was 
last  Sunday's  sermons,  or  those  in  prepa- 
ration for  the  next;  but  rarely  herself. 
There  she  lay  with  a  patience  that  was 
never  ruffled,  a  serenity  rarely  if  ever  dis- 
turbed, a  forgetfulness  of  self  bright  and 
fresh,  a  sohcitude  for  others  deep  and  full, 
and   a   fellowship   with    God   not    only   un- 


ii8  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

broken,  but  so  inspiring  as  to  make  the 
sick-room  a  sanctuary  radiant  with  His 
presence.  Prayer  led  her  to  the  fountains 
of  divine  joy,  daily  she  drank  and  was 
refreshed. 

So  I  set  down  a  few  tested,  verified  facts 
from  the  early  part  of  a  ministry  of  over 
thirty-eight  years  ;  facts  chosen  from  amongst 
many,  and  in  substance  repeated  again  and 
again  during  recent,  but  not  yet  reportable 
years. 


By  the  Very  Rev, 

G.  D.  BOYLE,  M.A. 

Dean  of  Salisbury 


"  "\  X  THAT  was  it  that  struck  you  most 
V  V  in  that  sermon  on  the  character 
of  St.  Paul?"  said  Bishop  Patteson  to  a 
friend  at  Oxford,  who  had  been  with  him 
listening  to  a  sermon  preached  before  the 
University  by  a  very  remarkable  man,  who 
has  now  passed  away.  ''Those  two  sen- 
tences," said  his  friend,  "  in  which  he  said 
there  were  two  great  powers  in  the  world, 
the  power  of  personal  religion,  and  the  power 
of  prayer."  When  I  told  this  many  years 
afterwards  to  one  of  the  best  parish  priests  I 


I20  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

have  ever  known,  he  gave  me,  from  his  own 
experience,  some  instances  of  answers  to 
prayer  which  are  certainly  worth  reading. 

Shortly  after  he  had  entered  Holy  Orders, 
he  joined  a  clerical  society.  He  was  greatly 
pleased  with  three  of  the  younger  members, 
but  thought  from  their  conversation  after  the 
meeting  that  they  were  too  fond  of  amuse- 
ments. As  he  walked  home  he  spoke  of  this 
to  an  elderly  clergyman,  who  said,  "  Let  you 
and  me  make  for  them  special  prayer,  that 
they  may  take  a  more  serious  view  of  their 
calling."  Some  time  afterwards  my  friend 
happened  to  see  one  of  these  three  brother 
clergymen  at  a  time  of  great  sorrow.  He 
told  him  that  he  had  resolved  to  give  up 
certain  amusements,  which  he  thought  at 
one  time  harmless.  Some  time  afterwards 
the  other  two  openly  declared  that  they  had 
taken  a  similar  course,  and  my  friend  did  not 
scruple  to  avow  his  belief  that  the  after  lives 
of  these  three  men,  all  of  high  family,  and 
all  remarkable  for  their  zeal  as  clergymen, 
was  a  direct  answer  to  special  intercession. 

He    told    me    of    a    still     more    striking 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  121 

instance.  Two  men,  who  had  been  friends 
at  college,  met  after  many  years  abroad. 
The  one  said  to  the  other,  ''  When  you  were 
at  Oxford,  you  told  me  you  were  very  indif- 
ferent as  to  religion,  so  I  suppose  you  will 
not  go  with  me  this  morning  to  the  English 
service."  *^  But  I  certainly  will,"  said  his 
friend.  "  I  have  given  up  all  that  sort  of 
thing;  I  left  off  praying  for  years,  in  the 
belief  that  as  God  knows  everything  it  was 
needless  to  pray,  but  an  impulse  came  upon 
me  after  hearing  Baron  Parke's  account  of  a 
sermon  he  heard  Shergold  Boone  preach, 
and    I    am    now   a   communicant."     "Then, 

dear ,"    said    his    friend,    "I    think   my 

prayer  is  answered,  for  I  have  never  ceased 
since  Oxford  days  to  ask  that  you  might 
have  the  happiness  I  enjoy." 

These  two  are  surely  remarkable  instances 
of  answers  to  special  prayer  for  spiritual 
benefit. 

What  shall  be  said  of  the  faithful  man  who, 
through  his  own  effort,  maintained  a  small 
but  efficient  orphanage?  From  no  fault  of 
his  own  his  supplies  ceased.      There  came 


122  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

into  his  mind  some  words  of  Edward  Irving's 
about  the  Fatherhood  of  God.  He  made  a 
special  petition  for  the  relief  of  his  poor 
children.  On  his  return  home  he  found  a 
letter  containing  a  request  that  the  future 
welfare  of  his  home  should  be  ensured  by  a 
permanent  endowment. 

"  How  could  you  keep  your  temper  through 
all  the  vexatious  dispute  of  to-night's  de- 
bate?" was  the  question  asked  of  Lord 
Althorpe  by  his  most  intimate  friend,  after 
a  fierce  discussion  on  the  Reform  Bill.  *'  I 
always  ask  for  strength  before  going  to  the 
House,"  was  the  answer;  "and  to-day  I 
asked  for  special  strength,  for  I  knew  that 
party  spirit  ran  high." 

Many  years  ago  I  worked  as  a  curate  in 
the  district  which  had  seen  the  first  labours 
of  the  excellent  Bishop  of  Wakefield,  whose 
sudden  removal  from  active  work  will  long 
be  deeply  mourned  by  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land. When  he  left  Kidderminster  for  a 
country  parish,  he  gave  a  New  Testament 
to  a  young  man  who  had  at  one  time  prom- 
ised well,  but  who  fell  into  bad  company. 


In  Answer  to  Prayer  123 

"  I  shall  make  you  the  subject  of  special 
prayer,"  said  the  Bishop,  on  wishing  him 
good-bye.  Some  years  afterwards  I  told 
the  Bishop  that  his  advice  had  not  been 
thrown  away,  and  his  words  were,  "  I  humbly 
hope  my  prayer  was  heard." 

Bishop  Mackenzie  told  a  friend  of  mine 
that  he  had  asked  for  some  change  in  the 
life  of  two  favourite  pupils  at  Cambridge. 
They  were  not  in  the  habit  of  going  to 
University  sermons,  but  they  went  to  hear 
one  of  Bishop  Selwyn's  famous  series  in 
1854.  One  of  them  became  an  eminent 
clergyman,  and  the  other  died  a  missionary 
in  India. 

One  more  instance  will  suffice.  An  attack 
upon  the  divinity  of  Christ  was  published 
some  years  ago  by  one  who  had  been  trained 
in  a  very  different  way.  His  former  tutor, 
who  had  a  very  great  love  for  him,  asked 
a  few  friends  not  to  forget  him.  As  the 
tutor  was  dying,  he  had  the  satisfaction 
of  hearing  that  the  man  he  had  known  and 
loved  from  childhood  had  returned  to  the 
faith  of  a  child. 


124  In  Answer  to  Prayer 

I  believe  that  all  who  have  had  consider- 
able experience  in  parochial  work  could 
give  many  instances  of  special  answers  to 
prayer.  In  recent  years  many  have  come 
forward  to  offer  themselves  for  labor  at 
home  and  abroad.  The  present  occupation 
of  many  minds  with  the  difficulties  of  belief, 
the  revelations  made  by  earnest  thinkers  like 
Romanes,  the  questions  raised  in  such  lives 
as  the  late  Master  of  Balliol's,  the  earnest 
longings  for  some  reconciliation  between  the 
men  of  science  and  the  men  of  faith,  may  all 
surely  be  accepted  as  in  some  degree  answers 
to  the  prayers  and  aspirations  of  all  who 
hope  that  in  the  Church  of  the  future  there 
may  be  found  a  simple  faith,  an  enduring 
charity,  and  a  belief  in  the  unchangeable 
strength  of  an  unchangeable  Saviour. 


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